Download or read book The Second Mrs. Gioconda written by E.L. Konigsburg and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2011-06-28 with total page 166 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Why did Leonardo da Vinci lavish three years on painting the second wife of an unimportant merchant when all the nobles of Europe were begging for a portrait by his hand? In E. L. Konigsburg's intriguing novel, the answer lies with the complex relationship between the genius, his morally questionable young apprentice, and a young duchess whose plain features belie the sensitivity of her soul.