<DIV></DIV> <P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-pagination: none; mso-line-height-alt: 8.05pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none">Truly in a class of its own, <I>Young Michelangelo</I> is the most definitive and eye-opening study of the artist&#8217;s early life to come along in a generation.</P> <P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-pagination: none; mso-line-height-alt: 8.05pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none">&#160;</P> <P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-pagination: none; mso-line-height-alt: 8.05pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none">In this compelling account, renowned art historian John Spike paints a vivid portrait of one of the world&#8217;s greatest artists and the places and people&#8212;Lorenzo de&#8217; Medici, Leonardo, Machiavelli&#8212;that inspired and defined his early life and career. Spike&#8217;s masterful text probes the thinking, evolution, and desires of a young man whose awareness of his exceptional talent never wavered. Michelangelo&#8217;s complex personality is revealed through lively examinations of the <I>Piet&#224;</I>, the <I>David</I>, and all other major works. Drawing on a rich background of Italian Renaissance politics and culture, Spike deftly navigates the fiery Florentine master&#8217;s struggle to surpass da Vinci&#8217;s artistic mastery, and his troubled relationships with Julius II and other key figures of the era. </P> <P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"></P>