Under The Wide and Starry Sky

Nancy Horan wrote Under The Wide And Starry Sky.  She also wrote Loving Frank which was about the woman who loved Frank Lloyd Wright.  This book, however, is about the woman who loved Robert Louis Stevenson.  Stevenson is the Scottish author who wrote The Odd Tale of Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde as well as Treasure Island.  Fanny Van de Grift Osbourne falls in love with the young and silly Robert Louis Stevenson.  Despite his impulsive and often short sighted behavior she gets a divorce and spends her life taking care of him.  Because of his lung illnesses, he only feels healthy when he is at sea.  Despite her sea sickness she sails with him until they settle in Samoa.  She helps nurse him back to health when he foolishly spends 3 days and nights scribbling a new story.  Their marriage is sometimes rocky.  I got into this story.  I was so into it, in fact, that when Stevenson is teaching his grandson how to roll his r's like a true Scot, I also tried to roll my r's.  I listened to this story on my way to and from work.  The splatter of spit on the inside of my windshield is testament to my efforts.  I can flutter my tongue just fine but I can't make the r sound at the same time.  I enjoy Nancy Horan's books and they have taught me that loving an artist is not an easy role to take on.