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From his early years as a member of an art/poetry collective, Gleizes questioned how art fit into society at large. Brooke explains that this collective, the Abbaye de Creteil, was named after an idea of Rabelais as a place of "refuge of honest, idealistic thinkers against a hostile world". How extremely and darkly troubling it then seems that along with his conscious questioning and awareness of his own place in society, Gleizes appears to bear a certain affinity for Germany and the Nazis during WWII. Brooke is uncertain of Gleizes's possible anti- Semitism, citing instances where Gleizes praises the Jews. It is an uncomfortable moment as Brooke confesses to the reader that while Gleizes never spoke in favor of any of the deportations in France, he never spoke out against them. Throughout everything, Brooke remains resolute in his commitment to Gleizes's artistic place in history. If you are a serious reader of art history or modern art, it will be a thesis that you won't want to miss. --J.P. Cohen
