Girl with a Pearl Earring (novel) anticipating that the match will be to their benefit. Apart from "Girl with a Pearl Earring" itself, in which Griet is the sitter, several more of Vermeer’s paintings feature in Chevalier’s novel. At the very start, "View of Delft" is recalled by Griet’s father. When Griet enters the household, Vermeer is working on "Woman with a Pearl Necklace" and Tanneke mentions soon after that she had been Vermeer’s model for "The Milkmaid". His next subject is "Woman with a Water Jug", for which the baker’s daughter models. Griet describes the painting to her father and also witnesses its creation in
Girl with a Pearl Earring (novel) work at the Vermeers', Pieter, the son of the family butcher at the meat market, starts courting Griet. She has been strictly brought up and does not welcome this at first, but tolerates his interest because it is of advantage to her impoverished parents. Griet is increasingly fascinated by Vermeer's paintings. Vermeer discovers that Griet has an eye for art and secretly asks her to run errands and perform tasks for him, such as mixing his paints and acting as a substitute model. Griet arouses the suspicions of Catharina, but Vermeer's mother-in-law, Maria Thins, recognizes Griet's presence as a steadying