The Moon and Sixpence
by W. Somerset Maugham
Based on the life of Paul Gauguin, "The Moon and the Sixties" is a tribute to W. Somerset Maugham for the powerful forces behind creative genius. Charles Strickland is a greedy banker, a man of wealth and privilege. He is also a man with an irrepressible desire to create art. As Strickland pursues his artistic vision, he travels from London to Paris and Tahiti, making sacrifices in his quest that shatter the lives of the closest people. Through Maugham's tender eye, Strickland's tortured and cruel spirit becomes a symbol of the blessing and curse of transcendent artistic genius, and sometimes the cost in the life of the person he demands.
