No comments about 365 Days of Shoes Calendar 2009 (Picture-A-Day Wall Calendars).

5 comments about American Writers at Home.

1. I found this book to be quietly revolutionary in its very conception. The author and photographic collaborator set out to show how physical space influenced and stimulated various well known American writers. They look at both the writer's residence and personal writing space within that structure. As an archaeologist I spend much of my time looking at how artifacts once served to reproduce worldview. Much of that interest in my field has followed Pierre Bourdieu's notion of habitus. This book does the same in that it looks at how home and writing space might stimulate both thought and words. And this is done in an absolutely stunning fashion with thoughtful text, quotation of relevant passages from the writer, and striking illustrations. Any one with an interest in writing, writers, history, photography, architecture, or material culture (as well as the just plain curious folks) will welcome this book as a holiday gift.



2. This is a very unusual and wonderful book that covers the working environment of American writers. The oldest writer in the book is Washington Irving who lived almost 200 years ago. The author has researched the environment and writing space of famous writers. This book looks at how the living & working conditions of the writers impact on their works. The book includes gorgeous photographs of the homes and writing spaces of the many writers covered in the book.



3. You unlikely would read it cover to cover. Instead, like the houses it explores, you would pop in for an occasional visit. And such wonderful visits author J.D. McClatchy and photographer Erica Lennard provide. Their words and pictures share similarities-soft and gentle in color yet detailed and realistic in portrayals so vivid you feel like a guest awaiting your host(ess) to step into the room and greet you. Poet McClatchy has woven details of the authors' biographies into a fabric of words about a central pattern of the homes where they lived and wrote. The 21 homes you will visit range from the austere farm house of Robert Frost to the Victorian elegance of Mark Twain's mansion to Hemmingway's Key West estate. As you travel from home to home-including those of Alcott, Dickenson, Emerson, Irving, Longfellow, Melville, and Welty-you travel, too, through time, from when pen and ink were the primary tools of authors into the era of the manual typewriter, but not beyond. McClatchy and Lennard have given us a romantic sense of simpler times and of the lives of the men and women who wrote our Nobel and Pulitzer winning classics, mostly while sitting at simple desks and tables. Surprisingly, many of them wrote in their bedrooms, perhaps further proof that really good writing comes from those who shorten the distance between an arduous task and creative rest. This book would have a proper home on the coffee table to the classroom.
   
   -- Lowell Forte, Cupertino CA



4. I love visiting historic homes and especially author's homes like Cross Creek (Rawlings), the rowhouse in Baltimore (Poe) and on Prince Edward Island (L. M. Montgomery). Now this book can take me to other homes for that special insight into favorite authors. I particularly like seeing the photos of their writing spaces. For some it's a handsome desk, while another worked at a worn wooden table. Just being able to picture where Hemingway spent his days in Key West or Emily Dickinson lived her quiet life, adds dimension to their writing.
   Although this book is not unique in covering this topic, it gives a quality tour of the homes of 21 writers. Other titles that might intrigue you are Writer's Houses and the book, Home: American Writers Remember Rooms of Their Own.
   For each author, you get a brief background on that person and the house. There are photos, a listing of visiting hours, phone numbers and web sites.



5. This beautifully illustrated hardback book would be a wonderful library addition for anybody that loves all forms of literature and also biographies of famous writers.
   
   This book was well researched by J.D. McClatchy and wonderfully photographed by Erica Lennard. And for once, it's so nice to read a book in which the photos go hand-in-hand with the prose and descriptions.
   
   As stated by other reviewers, this book includes a short biography of many famous writers, such as: Ralph Waldo Emerson, Edna St. Vincent Millay, Washington Irving, Mark Twain, Wm Faulkner, Louisa May Alcott and many more.
   
   The author then visited all the places that each author has lived, and has shown the reader the rooms (& accessories) that made each home so special to each writer.
   
   Many of these rooms and writing accessories might surprise the readers, since after reading some of the authors' famous works, one would think that each author/poet had created such amazing literary works in the most inspiring and comfortable surroundings. Not so.... because when you look at each photograph, the reader may notice that some of the rooms in which the authors wrote, looked rather dark and lonely and cold (also, some of the furniture looks so uncomfortable) . In addition, many of the authors/poets wrote their famous works snuggled in their beds, (not even on a desk & chair)! Thus, J.D. McClatchy showed the reader each bedroom that the author slept in, or wrote in, and sometimes even lived in. Through these photographs, the reader can imagine what it must have been like for these famous writers to create their famous poems or short stories or novels.
   
   It was so interesting to read and visually see how each author/poet viewed their writing experience. For example, if a writer needed to be surrounded by gardens, then J.D. McClatchy made sure that chapter included photos of the author's yards. Or, if an author preferred to pace back and forth outside on their porch, then J.D. McClatchy made sure to include photos of that special porch. Or, if an author liked to eat a big breakfast before beginning to write, then of course, this book would include photos of the kitchen and eating nook.
   
   I am going to refer to this book often, so that the next time I re-read THE SUN ALSO RISES or AGE OF INNOCENCE (for example), I can imagine how the author felt during that writing experience.

5 comments about Bauhaus (World of Art).

1. Mister Whitford thoroughly chronicled the events that formed and shaped the Bauhaus - from the very beginning to the unfortunate end. A very good point of view - a must read for the Bauhaus enthusiast.



2. Great background to an institution which was about as rock'n'roll as they come. The soul put into the establishment, its teachings, its beliefs (collective and individual) and the commitment of those involved is staggering - its a shame that it really doesn't have an equivalent today, but that's todays politic and media for you. Consice account that was almost written as a historical novel - Christ, I even read the bibliography at the end !! Off to find more books about it all now. Oh, and listen to Blumfeld, International Jetset & Earl Brutus whilst reading this too.

   AJC 1999




3. Frank Whitford's Bauhaus in the Thames & Hudson World of Art series provides a fine basic introduction to the 20th century's most important school of art. Whitford writes engagingly and informatively. He begins by sketching the prehistory of the school in the 19th century arts-and-crafts movement and then goes on to examine van der Velde and the Weimar Art School that served as the basis upon which Gropius established the school. Whitford deals with all the major figures in the fourteen-year history of the Bauhaus and he uses contemporary documents (journals, personal accounts, etc.) to tell the story. I rank this among the best books in the Thames & Hudson series. In fact, I assigned it as a required text in a course on the Bauhaus and the Weimar Republic. Incidentally, teachers might be interested to know that Whitford has also written and narrated a fine 60" film "Bauhaus: Face of the 20th Century" (available in the Films for the Humanities series.)



4. This a great tribute to perhaps the most influential design institute of the 20th Century.
   The story of it's development, philosophy, success and untimely end is perfectly chronicled here.
   The expert, novice and vaguely interested would find this book useful. It's a superb acaedemic source and an important catalogue. Bauhaus still influences design today and should also be regarded historicaly as yet another victim of the Nazi regime.



5. Frank Whitford provides an essential introduction to the Bauhaus in his book, titled simply--Bauhaus. Whitford follows the events of the school from a historical perspective starting with Walter Gropius' plan and motivation for the school, to its ultimate end in Dessau at the hand of the Nazis. Whitford also presents personal perspectives through the journal entries and personal letters of the staff and students of the Bauhaus. These personal accounts help create a connection between the historical and the personal, and track the change in mood within the school. Whitford's book spends very little time on the impact of the Bauhaus, which is an analysis beyond the scope of this book. Frank Whitford's book, Bauhaus should be of interest to any student of art, design or education.
   
   Copyright © 2007 Of My Own Design, Josh Crain. All Rights Reserved.

5 comments about Henri Cartier-Bresson: The Man, The Image & The World: A Retrospective.

1. A great retrospective of his incredible photography. I just got it for Xmas and LOVE it!



2. Fantástico libro de fotografías que recoge muchas de sus épocas como fotógrafo.
   Fotos de Barcelona,Madrid,Valencia,Paris.Berlin....
   Una auténtica maravilla.
   Si te gusta la fotografía,no debes dejar escapar este libro



3. I put off buying this book as long as I could and eventually I did, having in the meantime manhandled book store copies. It is difficult to get too much HCB and this offers a lot in one package.
   
   I take minor exception to HCB as elevating photography to art -- he is more often described as someone who turned his hobby into an art form, albeit it was a hobby informed by artisitic sensibility. The incomparable Eastman House in Rochester has examples that go back to the earliest days of photography as art. But the 20th century was crowded with photographic art. HCB's eminence in the PostWar recognition of Photography as Art by such places as MOMA is a given. (he preferred the small a).
   
   The number of photographs included is for me in this book is an asset, providing a broad look at the stupendous body of work done by HCB during his long career.
   
   In the 1950s and early 60s, the greatest influence on young photojournalists came from "This Is War" by David Douglas Duncan, published in 1951 and "The Decisive Moment" in 1952, which took its title from HCB's text. The Verve edition used a different title, i.e. "Images à la sauvette" which translates to "pictures on the run."
   
   Robert Capa suggested to HCB that he call himself a photojournalist and later the two would join in forming Magnum, the first and greatest photo agency. From that came the inaccurate sometime sobriquet of " Father of Photojounalism."
   
   HCB's work received the earliest important recognition from Americans and his exhibitions and books always received a warm reception. Had he been an American, his political views might have ensnared him in the hysteria of the 50s.His individual perspective was as strong as one might expect from someone who spent three years in a Nazi prison. After the war's bitter experiene, HCB's work became much more humanist.
   
   In France his acceptance as an artist does not fully reflect the merits of his work. The US has accepted the work of HCB and Eugene Atget at a level that the French art establishment did not -- although he did have support that matters. One reason cited is that HCB objected to the "fetishistic attitude" toward original prints.
   
   HCB's darkroom work was done by skilled technicians. Berenice Abbot promoted the merit of Atget's work with her own prints from the thousands of negatives she brought back to the US.
   
   That is a point on which HCB was entirely right. Some earlier vintage prints of his work is not all that good. HCB recognized that for his genre, a skilled darkroom craftsman could both satisfy his esthetic judgments and replicate his work over and over. What he could control was how many "authorized" images there were.
   
   A gigantic HCB exhiition at the Bibliotheque Nationale de France several years ago was pectacular -- the BNF chosen because it would gladly work with HCB and his wife. That was a rare opportunity that had to be taken. You don't think much about the print, but rather what an eye HCB has for the moment.
   
   There are certainly photographers who marry their eye to theirr work in the darkroom. HCB did not see it that way.
   
   This book is perfect for me, but others less familiar with HCB's work might be better off with one of his books on a theme, e.g. Paris, etc.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   



4. The book is a testimony to the capabilities of Henri Cartier-Bresson as a photographer. With limited equipment, a camera and only one lens, he managed to capture an amazing range of emotions and phenomenon. Cartier-Bresson's work, which is amply documented in this book, also provides an example of "available light" photography.
   
   My one complaint is the quality of reproduction of the photos is somewhat poor, though I am not sure whether this could have been remedied by the publishers



5. I admire and love Henri Cartier-Bresson so much, the master not only in Photography, but also in the history of humanity. I believe in Buddhism so much. And So does Cartier-Bresson.
   
   Cartier-Bresson spread his humanity and the love of the life to the whole world during not only the past 100 years, but also the years we will have.
   
   Photography is just a kind of art to normal an artist. To Cartier-Bresson, it is the artless art.
   
   Regarding this book, it is my first one about Cartier-Bresson, and I decide to buy more after I enjoyed this book.
   
   If you are new to Cartier-Bresson, buy this one without hesitation. You will fall in love with the master just as I did.
   
   If you know well about Cartier-Bresson, buy this one also. It is an overview of the master. You can get the information you need just in one book.
   
   If you are an adorer of Cartier-Bresson, buy this one as a must. Do not need to say why, because it is about Henri Cartier-Bresson.
   
   All in all, buy this book. Read, feel, and enjoy. Not only the photography, but also the life.

2 comments about Masterclass: Anal Sex.

1. Wonderful pictures, short book, not very much information. Buy this book for the visual and "Anal Sex for Couples" for instruction.



2. This is a really informative read for anyone interested in adding any anal behaviour to their play.
   
   Anal sex must be one of the most discussed topics, highly erotic for some repulsive and vile for others etc. Even historically it was significant enough to rate a mention, written into Mythology where it was demonized as an extremity of sinfulness (Sodom). Curious that. After all, the same mythology includes enlightenment being evil (The tree of the knowledge of good and evil), female empowerment being improper (check out the Lilith myth) etc. So that in itself acts a pretty good recommendation, suggests there may be something worth exploring in anal sex. Anything that was so vigorously opposed by the institutions charged with the job of keeping the masses compliant and scared to reach their full potential for knowledge, power and pleasure must have some merit!! In the Southern parts of India anal sex was also included in the Kama Sutra as a sacred and significant act, yep, lots of good reasons not to dismiss anal sex as weird kinky stuff just for sick people.
   
   This is a great little read that doesn't bother with the historic aspects I've just mentioned. Instead it's straight forward, honest and a good manual, helping people understand what it's all about, to know their own bodies, to learn their own pleasures, understand safety and, for some no doubt, find some of the best fun times and most powerful orgasmic experiences they might ever have. For others they'll just have a better understanding on their bodies and possibly just find one more sexual option that just `isn't for them'. None of that matters though because there's probably very few people who could read this book without gaining a better understanding of their bodies and find some more options to explore in search of the pleasure that does `do it' for them.
   
   If my body is a temple, there is no part of it which isn't sacred and no part of my body which is dirty or in any way a shame or embarrassment. If anyone has a problem with my refusing to consider any part of me or any partner of mine dirty or a humility, you know where they can stick their thoughts,-in their dirty, humiliating places!!
   
   Cheers
   
   Lloyd

5 comments about The Snowflake.

1. The photos in this book are breathtaking! This makes a great gift for a hard to buy for person. I bought it for my father and he loves it!



2. This handsome book should motivate the reader to appreciate -- perhaps even delight in -- every snowfall. The photos are superb; they are often curiously interesting and always a visual feast. Libbrecht provides an easy to understand description of the formation of snow crystals (not all of them are flakes, he points out.) The book will encourage some readers to want more, and Libbrecht provides a companion volume -- a Field Guide -- for that purpose. This is more than a mere coffee-table volume. Libbrecht makes the physics behind the snow crystals not only understandable, but charming. Libbrecht uses clear prose without "dumbing down" the science. Now, if Libbrecht will only produce another volume with 3D or stereo views...!



3. Well written, with unparalleled photos of snow crystals. The book contains accurate physics, nice insights into snow crystal morphology and growth and is at a level that will engage almost everyone. Enough information here for a physicist to enjoy the book, but presented in a way that will not intimidate the layman. Just gazing at the pictures of the snowflakes will inspire wonder at the beauty of these little ephemeral creations, and is an antidote for frazzled nerves any time of the day, in any season. I've bought several to give away and one for myself, and it probably won't be the last one.
   
   The reviewer below who thought the author doesn't give enough credit to God for the amazing design of the snowflake, may be a little too demanding. Perhaps the author thought the little crystals speak for themselves, and lets the reader draw his own conclusions. I can't look at these beautiful pictures without marveling at a God who is so creative He doesn't "know when to quit"!



4. I have read this book quite many years ago, or just two, and I can honestly say it's beautiful in the most breath-taking way. The photographs are seriously impressive and I don't think you've ever seen snowflakes quite like that. The text is great as well and you get to learn a lot of things about snowflakes.
   
   Don't think this book would "steal" the mystery of snowflakes, as with everything in life, the more questions are answered, the more questions. So with this book.
   
   I recommend it to anyone interested in snow and snowflakes in particular. It would make a wonderful gift, also. I can't recommend this book enough.



5. Exellent book on snowflakes. Great photos and educational info on the formation , etc. This book makes a great gift.

4 comments about Thomas Jefferson's Monticello.

1. One of the clichés about Monticello is that few houses do so good a job revealing the personality of its builder. But clichés get to be such generally because there's truth to them, and that's definitely the case here. If Thomas Jefferson was one of the most interesting figures in American history (and I think that's unquestionably true), then Monticello may well be one of America's most interesting houses. And for this colorful book produced by the Thomas Jefferson Foundation, we are guided through the house and grounds by people who know their stuff.

   Specifically, the chapters of this title are written by Monticello's director of restoration, the curator, the director of gardens and grounds, and other experts associated with the Foundation. Large, colorful photos are accompanied by informed commentary and all the requisite history, as well as documentation of the decades of restoration work it has taken to get the house and grounds to its current condition. A book doesn't make up for a visit in person -- if anything, I wished for more photos of the interior, especially of the book room and "cabinet." But for a general overview of the house, grounds, and collection, and an insight into the man himself, this book is hard to beat. I recommend it as a souvenir, as well as a nice companion to a Jefferson biography.




2. This is a highly informative, well documented book covering all aspects of the design and building of Thomas Jefferson's home, plus insights into why things were done the way they were done, through Jefferson's own notes, sketches and correspondence. Plus,the photographs are exquisite.



3. This work successfully links the many unique qualities of Thomas Jefferson's personality to the unique qualities of the home that he designed and spent most of his life building and rebuilding. All of the intriguing features of this home are covered.
   Anyone interested in this remarkable man and his home who is unable to visit Monticello in person should strongly consider this work.



4. Thomas Jefferson's Monticello, an essay in architecture, takes readers on a historical tour of the third U.S. president's cherished home near Charlottesville, Virginia, through well-written text and gorgeous, full-color photography. The book includes floor plans and photographs of Jefferson's original architectual elevations, as well as drawings of the finished building that we are most familiar with today. It describes Jefferson as art collector and plantation life on Monticello's farms, and it explores the four seasons in Monticello's gardens. Published in 2002 by the Thomas Jefferson Foundation, Inc.

4 comments about Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain.

1. Since the first time I read this book in 1983, I had the wish to express my gratitude to Dr. B. Edwards, because this book made great difference in my life. Through understanding better the process of realistic drawing I have improved my self in many ways. Learning to really see is a way to grow inside as a person, in all senses. That book has marked my passage from adolescence to adulthood (I was 22 then. At the time I was attending Massachussets College of Art in Boston, and heard about this book listening "All Things Considered" at National Public Radio, rigth after I bought it at the Harvard Coop). It also opened my self to accept what we do not explain, to have faith in God. I'm artist living and working in Northeast Brazil,city of NATAL, where I have a studio. I work mostly with acrylics and watercolor, but my strongest media of expression is freehand drawing... Thanks for sharing my feelings, Love Flavio Freitas



2. This book is as much about understanding "how and why all of us have the ability to draw but can't" as it is about teaching anyone to draw. If you are an older begginer this is a must, not only it teaches you how to tap into your natural drawing ability but it tells you why you STOPPED drawing. I always understand things better when I know why it happens or doesn't happen So if you ALSO want to feed your INTELLECT as much as your artistic talent get THIS book. If you just want mindless excercises and learn to draw by practice then get "Complete Idiot's guide to drawing," (no pun intended) by Lauren Jarrett, Lisa Lenard. The Idiot's guide pretty much copies concepts and methods THIS book puts forwared but without the detailed explanation and science behind it, specially if you are young and/or don't want to read too much. The method is the same and it WORKS.



3. As I began reading this book, I expected to find one thing but soon realized it contained much more. I remember crying when I did the drawing exercise. I struggled as I tried to draw joy and other abstract concepts, but when finished I was astonished when I turned the page and realized others had made drawings very similar to mine. In an instant, I felt united with humanity and the tears flowed. (And I am not teary person). All of a sudden I understood how great art touches us so deeply, with out regard to our financial status or ethic background.



4. This book gives you several simple ways to avail yourself of the right side of yur brain, and they really work. There are interesting exercises throughout, and you can gauge how you are improving. Very well written in that no words are wasted, and there is meat in every paragraph. Alongside the text are interesting and/or inspiring quotes. Maybe you will begin this book the way I did, unable to draw anything beyond a stick figure, and become someone who can draw a hand you would think you could reach out and shake if you wanted to. Wonderful book, and it has inspired me to try to take my "art" further. As an aside, I am seeing more in nature, and I'm still just a beginner.

2 comments about Digital Photography Masterclass.

1. Very helpful with excellent suggestions for improving my hobby of digital photography. Would highly recomment book for all interested in digital imaging. Have other text by Tom Ang that I really found helpful.



2. This is a great photography book, with tons of shooting ideas, and techniques, both capture and processing. Masterclass breaks down what might seem difficult, and makes it pretty easy. I find myself referencing it before some shoots to get ideas, and after to get post processing ideas. There are a lot of books about photography, but none as easy to follow as this one. No matter what your skill level, there is something in the book for you. A definate purchase.

No comments about Marsh Mission: Capturing The Vanishing Wetlands.