A Thing of Beauty explained

A Thing of Beauty
Author:A. J. Cronin
Cover Artist:George Salter
Country:United Kingdom
Language:English
Publisher:Gollancz (UK)
Little, Brown (US)
Release Date:1955, 1956 By A.J. Cronin
Media Type:Print (Hardback & Paperback)
Pages:440 pp. (US hardback edition)
Isbn:0-515-03379-0
Isbn Note:(US hardback edition)

A Thing of Beauty is a novel by author A. J. Cronin, initially published in 1956, with the alternate title of Crusader's Tomb. It tells the story of Stephen Desmonde, an English painter who struggles for recognition in a conventional world, sacrificing everything for his passion for art. The title is a reference to John Keats' 1818 poem, Endymion, which begins with "A thing of beauty is a joy for ever."