Book Description
The Algerian War lasted from 1954 to 1962. It brought down six French governments, led to the collapse of the Fourth Republic, returned de Gaulle to power, and came close to provoking a civil war on French soil. More than a million Muslim Algerians died in the conflict and as many European settlers were driven into exile. Above all, the war was marked by an unholy marriage of revolutionary terror and repressive torture.
Nearly a half century has passed since this savagely fought war ended in Algeria’s independence, and yet—as Alistair Horne argues in his new preface to his now-classic work of history—its repercussions continue to be felt not only in Algeria and France, but throughout the world. Indeed from today’s vantage point the Algerian War looks like a full-dress rehearsal for the sort of amorphous struggle that convulsed the Balkans in the 1990s and that now ravages the Middle East, from Beirut to Baghdad—struggles in which questions of religion, nationalism, imperialism, and terrorism take on a new and increasingly lethal intensity.
A Savage War of Peace is the definitive history of the Algerian War, a book that brings that terrible and complicated struggle to life with intelligence, assurance, and unflagging momentum. It is essential reading for our own violent times as well as a lasting monument to the historian’s art.
Customer Reviews:
Chilling Masterpiece.......2007-09-26
I selected this book wishing to know more about the French war in Algeria. Mr. Horne more than satisfied my curiousity. He provides an in-depth, virtually blow-by-blow account of the eight year conflict, pulling no PC punches, and taking great care to remain as impartial as possible. This is no easy feat, given the intensity of the situation. He is very careful to present this as not a typical colonial war as much as a battle between 2 diametrically opposed visions for Algeria. On one side were the Pieds Noirs, whose families had lived in Algeria for generations, understandably saw Algeria as their home, and wanted to preserve "Le Algerie Francaise." On the other hand, you have the FLN (not the spokesman for most Algerians), with its demands for Algerian independence, sans the Pieds Noirs. What made this conflict a battle between extremes was the FLN's reign of terror against relative moderates among the Algerians (many of whom had advocated finding a "middle ground" in the conflict). This has the effect of presenting the FLN as France's only "negotiating" partner within Algeria. Moreover, it pushed many of the Pieds Noirs to support such hard-line groups as the OAS. Essentially, the FLN set up the conflict to end in its favor, as the war nearly tore France apart on several occasions (and nearly claimed the life of Charles De Gaulle on an equal number of occasions). Mr. Horne captures this story very nicely, weaving back and forth between Algeria and France. He demonstrates beyond all reasonable doubt that the conflict had very high stakes for the French. Also, he describes how the outcome of the conflict proved to not be France's finest hour, to put it very charitably.
Read it before you start a Mid-East War.......2007-09-21
What every President should know before getting seriously involved anywhere in the Mid-East or Muslim world. It would seem that we are damned if we do, and equally damned if we don't. It's not so much the book's details (although the book is magnificently detailed), as it is the portrayal of the depth of hatreds and the commitment to violence as the sole means to the proponents ends.
Shines a light on insurgencies in the 20th century.......2007-08-19
Horne's classic book on Algeria is one of those rare works of history that breaks open the subject at hand to peer deep into the heart of an era. It details the entire Franco-Algerian war from its historical antecedents through the military and political struggles of the war itself and into the late 20th century, tracking the Algerian fight for independence and the wrestling of the French nation with redefinition after colonialism. The parallels to numerous other insurgencies in the 20th and early 21st centuries are obvious.
What is most tragic about Alistair Horne's tale from my perspective as a theologian, however, is the seeming inevitability of the whole Algerian tragedy. Though Horne highlights several points at which the confrontation might have taken a faster and more complete track toward reconciliation, it's difficult to see how the actors in the moment could have grasped these opportunities. The stage seems to have been set for years of violence sometime deep in the past, as pieds noirs became firmly Algerian and native Algerians became jaded at the empty rhetoric of their French occupiers. Plenty of blame can be spread around to perpetrators of horrible and inhuman acts during the seven and a half years of conflict, but it is difficult to see how any one actor or group could have decisively brought about a clearer peace.
The lessons of the Algerian conflict are ripe to be picked by anyone willing to study it. Many of Horne's insights about these types of confrontations carry over to the war in Iraq, civil war in numerous spots around the globe, and the struggle to combat terrorism around the world. Indeed, the book is being studied at the highest levels in Washington, according to news reports. One can only hope that the venerable chronicler of France's last years as a colonial power is being heeded.
Peering Into the Cesspit.......2007-08-10
One of the things that perplexed and, frankly, disgusted me, throughout this book was the posturing of many key figures on the French side about "honour" and "grandeur". In pursuit of their honour, many of these people behaved in the most disgraceful and dishonourable manner.
They preened themselves on their honour and spoke volubly about "restoring the glory of France", but when the going got difficult, they mostly resigned their positions or simply abandoned their responsibilities - often to return later to repeat the whole disreputable process - or intrigue among themselves.
Perhaps a psychologist could shed more light on this cesspit of misplaced values than an historian.
But what of the other side - the Algerian independence movement? The alphabet soup of factions (FLN, CRUA, MTLD, UDMA etc etc) was liberally peopled by thugs, assassins, torturers and thieves. They squabbled among themselves, intrigued for office, occasionally betrayed each other, and terrorised their own people - all in the cause of Algerian independence.
Even after independence, members of the ruling clique continued to wage war upon each other and upon the Algerian people. The struggle continues to this day.
Ordinary Algerians on both sides were the victims of the war - as is ever the case. At its end, within months, almost all the "pied noir" population had fled the country in one of the great mass migrations of the post war era. Muslims who had worked and fought for the French and who were unable (or chose not) to flee were mercilessly hunted down.
I finished the book with a sense of disgust, of having been soiled by the mostly contemptible people shaping events on both sides. When one peers into a cesspit of struggling fanatics, one inevitably gets splashed.
However, readers should not be deterred from reading this book. "A Savage War of Peace" deserves to be read. Its lessons are equally valid today in the Middle East and elsewhere.
The book gives an excellent account of the war from both French and Muslim sides, but while the latter was adequately covered in a factual sense, that side of the story was somewhat dry and impersonal.
To a large extent this simply reflects the availability of sources - and those willing to talk freely and honestly. The author claims to have been hampered by the "traditional secretiveness and suspicion of the Algerian Arabs" - especially when the possibility of assassination was ever present for those critical of the Algerian leadership.
Within these limitations, Horne gives an objective account of the 8-year war, during which up to 600,000 French military personnel were stationed in Algeria. As the struggle went on, both sides resorted increasingly to torture and terror to achieve their aims.
At one point military victory seemed in sight, although one must suspect that, had the French "won" in a military sense, the price would have been some sort of partition of Algeria into French and Muslim zones, and the permanent military suppression of the latter. Sound familiar?
Another conclusion one can draw from the book is that the relentless pursuit of an ideology rarely, if ever, results in a better life for ordinary people who are to be "improved". This was true for Communism and will probably be proven true eventually for the various forms of Islamic fundamentalism currently destroying lives in many parts of the world - and true also for ideologues on the other side who fight them in the name of freedom and democracy - and who are equally convinced of their righteousness.
Mirror For Our Times.......2007-08-09
Alistair Horne's seminal book on the Algerian War, A Savage War of Peace: Algeria 1954-1962, is a thorough look at a war that closely resembles the current conflict in Iraq. I read a couple of really interesting articles on this book earlier and felt compelled to read it. Terrorism, civil war, torture: these things also took place in Algeria and it would seem that there are some lessons to learned, but it seems they have not been heeded. It was a very long and complicated book, but not without its rewards. Apparently it has been read by Bush and several of his advisors. I think it would have been more meaningful to me if had a better grasp of the conflict and French history since 1945 in general, but that being said there was a lot of interesting information about this conflict. Terrorism, de Gaulle, France, and other conflicts like those in South Africa, Ireland, and Indo China. I think this paragraph sums up the situation pretty astutely:
One is left with the controversial role of de Gaulle, criticized both for going too slow and too fast. As far as the latter reproach goes, in the last stages of negotiations he suffered from the lesson not learned by Kissinger in Vietnam, or perhaps by Israel vis-à-vis the Arab world, or by the South Africans; namely, that peoples who have been waiting for their independence for a centenary, fighting for it for a generation, can afford to sit out a presidential term, or a year or two in the life of an old man in a hurry; that he who last s the longest wins; that sadly, with the impatience of democracies and their volatile voters committed to electoral contortions every five or four years, the extremists generally triumphs over the moderate. Just keep on being obdurate, don't leave deviate from maximum terms, was the lesson handed down by the F.L.N. (Front de Liberation Nationale) and remains as grimly valid today-Northern Ireland or the Middle East or southern Africa. One after another de Gaulle saw his principles for peace eroded in the face of the F.L.N.'s refusal to compromise. As his disillusion grew, so did his resolve to liquidate the war with all the speed. In his final haste injustices were perpetrated, such as the exclusion from the peace talks of any representative Algerian faction (e.g. the M.N.A.-Mouvement Nationaliste Algerienne)) other than the F.L.N. Yet de Gaulle did liquidate that savage war.
Book Description
From the late 1920s to late 1950s, the Broadway theatre was America's cultural epicenter. Television didn't exist and movies were novelties. Entertainment took the form of literature, music, and theatre. During this golden age of Broadway, actors and actresses became legends and starred in now classic plays. Laurence Olivier, Alfred Lunt and Lynne Fontaine were names to remember, etching plays into memory as they brought the words of Tennessee Williams or Eugene O’Neill to life. Joseph Cotton romanced Katherine Hepburn in Philip Barry's The Philadelphia Story while Laurette Taylor became The Glass Menagerie’s Amanda Wingfield. Frederic March, Florence Eldridge, Jason Robards Jr. and Bradford Dillman showed us life among the ruins in Long Day's Journey Into Night. In All That Glittered, Ethan Mordden, long one of Broadway's best chroniclers, recreates the fascinating lost world of its golden age.
Customer Reviews:
Mordden Does It Again.......2007-09-30
Ethan Mordden has written many books on the topic of Broadway, although generally they have been about the musical stage. This time he writes about plays, (mostly) without music, and rather arbitrarily defines, perhaps for purposes of symmetry, its golden age as the period between 1919 and 1959 (although he can't help himself and goes on into the 1960s a bit). As usual one is amazed at his encyclopedic knowledge of Broadway history; one can imagine him spending weeks and months, perhaps even years, in dusty libraries reading all those old copies of Variety, Playbill and the New York newspapers. His all-but-copyrighted bitchiness is much in evidence and gave me more than a few chuckles. His penchant for pointing who was gay among the actors, authors and directors, and for finding gay themes where they aren't obvious, is prominent.
He chronicles the Broadway spoken play by decade and finds something characteristic about each period. I found his writing, always sparkling, becomes more so when he gets to the 1940s and beyond, perhaps because those plays and the people who made them are within living memory for many people. Clearly Mordden (who is right at sixty, although his glamorous never-changing dustjacket picture hasn't changed in at least two decades) has had personal contact with many of the people mentioned in those latter years and he has some tales to tell.
Included are some pretty obscure plays and we are all the more informed for that. He writes much about the important actors, writers, producers and directors and we pick up a lot of theater lore as a result. His writing style is dense with fact and sometimes hermetic but it always dances along. I had difficulty putting the book down.
Another valuable book by Mordden, possibly primarily for specialists but assimilable by the casual reader with even a modicum of interest in the subject.
Scott Morrison
A fascinating retrospective on the role of Broadway in American culture.......2007-06-25
I love theatre history, but Mordden is such a fine writer that I will read his "History of Plumbing" should he write one.
Unlike his essential seven-volume chronicle of the musical, this is not a show-by-show description. Instead, Mordden takes a thematic approach, insightfully linking the development of the Broadway play to broader cultural developments. The shift from rural to urban humor, the relationship between Broadway and Hollywood, and the role of theatre as educator to the unsophisticated are among his compelling through-lines. Despite my unfamiliarity with most of the titles referenced, this is a great read.
Play Time.......2007-04-06
Ethan Mordden is probably best known for three things: the impossibility of remembering how to spell his last name; the width and depth of his subject matter; and his encyclopedic knowledge of musical theater. To all this, we can now add a fourth; an almost equally deep knowledge of "straight" (in the theatrical sense) drama. While it is arguable as to whether the golden age began in 1919 and ended in 1959, Mordden's treatment of this span is as exciting and insightful as any of his other critical studies and that, as his readers know, is saying a lot! (Aside to Mr. Mordden: The title "Beggar on Horseback" may be more closely related to the saying, "If wishes were horses, then beggars would ride."... just a thought). Oh, and the only reason for 4 instead of 5 stars is to have somewhere to go for the next time.
Average customer rating:
- Here Is New York by E. B. White
- A Love Letter to New York City
- Style, Truth, Prescience
- Small Treasure
- A swell little essay
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Here is New York
E.B. White
Manufacturer: Little Bookroom
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Essays of E. B. White (Perennial Classics)
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One Man's Meat
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Writings from The New Yorker 1927-1976
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Manhattan '45
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Letters of E. B. White, Revised Edition
ASIN: 1892145022
Release Date: 2000-01-01 |
Amazon.com
"On any person who desires such queer prizes, New York will bestow the gift of loneliness and the gift of privacy." So begins E.B. White's classic meditation on that noisiest, most public of American cities. Written during the summer of 1948, well after the author and editor had taken up permanent residence in Maine, Here Is New York is a fond glance back at the city of his youth, when White was one of the "young worshipful beginners" who give New York its passionate character. It's also a tribute to the sheer implausibility of the place--the tangled infrastructure, the teeming humanity, the dearth of air and light. Much has changed since White wrote this essay, yet in a city "both changeless and changing" there are things here that will doubtless ring equally true 100 years from now. To wit, "New Yorkers temperamentally do not crave comfort and convenience--if they did they would live elsewhere."
Anyone who's ever cherished his essays--or even Charlotte's Web--knows that White is the most elegant of all possible stylists. There's not a sentence here that does not make itself felt right down to the reader's very bones. What would the author make of Giuliani's New York? Or of Times Square, Disney-style? It's hard to say for sure. But not even Planet Hollywood could ruin White's abiding sense of wonder: "The city is like poetry: it compresses all life ... into a small island and adds music and the accompaniment of internal engines." This lovely new edition marks the 100th anniversary of E.B. White's birth--cause for celebration indeed. --Mary Park
Book Description
Perceptive, funny, and nostalgic, E.B. White's stroll around Manhattan remains the quintessential love letter to the city, written by one of America's foremost literary figures. The New York Times has named Here is New York one of the ten best books ever written about the metropolis, and The New Yorker calls it "the wittiest essay, and one of the most perceptive, ever done on the city.
Customer Reviews:
Here Is New York by E. B. White.......2007-02-23
Anything by E. B. White is fine - he must have been quite young when he wrote this but I enjoyed reading it and getting a sense of what New York was like at that time - some of it is still true but much has changed.
A Love Letter to New York City.......2006-04-24
HERE IS NEW YORK is a truly spectacular 1948 essay that originally appeared in Holiday magazine. Written by E.B. White and named one of the ten best books ever written about New York, this is a quick read that will leave you years later savoring White's timeless observations.
Writing in a hotel room during a sweltering heat wave, White takes the reader through the essence of New York City and its eight million inhabitants who he notes roughly fall into three groups: the natives, the commuters and the transplants.
Warning that "no one should come to New York unless he is willing to be lucky," White lovingly explains how the city is more a collection of thousands of small neighborhoods that implausibly operate independently of each other, completely oblivious to what is occurring only a few blocks away.
Though it was written almost 60 years ago, HERE IS NEW YORK is just as accurate today as the moment it was written. Yes, the city has changed but the basic structure of life in New York remains the same.
Overall HERE IS NEW YORK is a very positive book that will leave everyone feeling welcome and needed in America's biggest city. But eerily the book presciently warns that "a single flight of planes no bigger than a wedge of geese can quickly end this island fantasy, burn the towers, crumble the bridges, turn the underground passages into lethal passages, cremate the millions."
Though it was tough to read that passage right after 9/11 as I did, I still whole heartedly recommend HERE IS NEW YORK to anyone who lives in New York, commutes to and from there, or has just moved there and is now, as White observed, generating "enough heat and light to dwarf the Consolidated Edison Company."
- Regina McMenamin
Style, Truth, Prescience.......2005-12-11
Early to a party, I was looking at a friend's bookcase and pulled this slim volume from a shelf. After reading the first sentence, I knew I had to have it.
Originally published in 1949, E.B. White, who no longer lived in New York City, captured the soul and spirit of the place. Nothing has changed. At the time, the United Nations building was under construction, and the bombing of London was fresh in his mind. He ends the book with a vision that perfectly balances hope with danger, in words prescient of September 11 - I re-read those paragraphs on every anniversary, it has become my ritual.
But what originally drew me to the book is not only the truth and insight of White, but his style, his felicity of expression. The author of "The Elements of Style" certainly knew the rules, and knew when to break them, as well. The second paragraph ends with a run-on sentence 198 words long, a thrilling joy ride which itself demonstrates how impossible it is to capture, in prose, the enormity and importance of this city.
I agree with Russell Baker, this is "the finest portrait ever painted of the city."
Small Treasure.......2005-10-19
A tightly written prose essay. An appreciation of the city that was and is. Memories and images of things past and things enduring. The city of E.B. White. If you live her, love her or even dislike her this memoir will evoke strong recollections.
Short, incisive, majestic. A small treasure for those who love the great cities of the world.
A swell little essay.......2005-08-29
I bought a 1949 first edition of this and just loved holding the 4"x6" (or thereabouts) gem in my hands. It has a sepia "Fairchild Aerial Surveys" image of Manhattan on the cover, as well as blurbs calling E.B. White "swell" and "meaty" and "original, all wool and a yard wide." I'm just starting to learn that part of the pleasure of a book, occasionally, is its packaging - and this was a swell example. I barely know what to add to the other comments here about White's writings. If you know him only through his three beautifully crafted childrens' books, this is one place to start with his essays. Here is New York was originally written for Holiday magazine. You can read the essay (and, consequently, this book) in one sitting. The ideas here are admittedly romantic and, from my twenty-first-century perspective, sometimes a tad cloying. That said, White's sentences always deliver spare, direct ideas. He is truly a joy to read. If you love Manhattan as I do, you'll want to have this as part of your library, if only to be reminded every once in awhile that someone voiced your own feelings 60 years ago.
Book Description
Updated and Revised In a lively panorama of stimulating juxtapositions, sequences, and cross references, this new edition of Modern Contemporary provides a cornucopia of 590 works of key contemporary art (37 more than in the original edition). Thought-provoking page spreads juxtapose Jia Zhang Ke, Matthew Barney and Kara Walker; Gabriel Orozco, Chris Ofili, and Jeanne Dunning; Philippe Starck and Rineke Dijkstra; Jenny Holzer and Robert Gober; Mona Hatoum and Teiji Furuhashi; Philip-Lorca diCorcia, Juan Snchez, Raymond Pettibon, and Rosemarie Trockel; Gary Hill, General Idea and Lari Pittman; and David Wojnarowicz and Bruce Nauman, to name a few. Addressing the extensive holdings of contemporary art in the collection of The Museum of Modern Art, New York, Modern Contemporary covers an international spectrum of art in a variety of mediums, all made in the last two decades of the 20th century and the first few years of the 21st. Organized chronologically and encompassing a prime selection of painting, sculpture, architecture, design, photography, drawings, prints, film, and video, this rich and varied array of art from 1980 until now offers a virtual compendium of the visual culture of our own time.
Amazon.com
Oprah Book Club® Selection, June 2000: As any reader of The Mosquito Coast knows, men who drag their families to far-off climes in pursuit of an Idea seldom come to any good, while those familiar with At Play in the Fields of the Lord or Kalimantaan understand that the minute a missionary sets foot on the fictional stage, all hell is about to break loose. So when Barbara Kingsolver sends missionary Nathan Price along with his wife and four daughters off to Africa in The Poisonwood Bible, you can be sure that salvation is the one thing they're not likely to find. The year is 1959 and the place is the Belgian Congo. Nathan, a Baptist preacher, has come to spread the Word in a remote village reachable only by airplane. To say that he and his family are woefully unprepared would be an understatement: "We came from Bethlehem, Georgia, bearing Betty Crocker cake mixes into the jungle," says Leah, one of Nathan's daughters. But of course it isn't long before they discover that the tremendous humidity has rendered the mixes unusable, their clothes are unsuitable, and they've arrived in the middle of political upheaval as the Congolese seek to wrest independence from Belgium. In addition to poisonous snakes, dangerous animals, and the hostility of the villagers to Nathan's fiery take-no-prisoners brand of Christianity, there are also rebels in the jungle and the threat of war in the air. Could things get any worse?
In fact they can and they do. The first part of The Poisonwood Bible revolves around Nathan's intransigent, bullying personality and his effect on both his family and the village they have come to. As political instability grows in the Congo, so does the local witch doctor's animus toward the Prices, and both seem to converge with tragic consequences about halfway through the novel. From that point on, the family is dispersed and the novel follows each member's fortune across a span of more than 30 years.
The Poisonwood Bible is arguably Barbara Kingsolver's most ambitious work, and it reveals both her great strengths and her weaknesses. As Nathan Price's wife and daughters tell their stories in alternating chapters, Kingsolver does a good job of differentiating the voices. But at times they can grate--teenage Rachel's tendency towards precious malapropisms is particularly annoying (students practice their "French congregations"; Nathan's refusal to take his family home is a "tapestry of justice"). More problematic is Kingsolver's tendency to wear her politics on her sleeve; this is particularly evident in the second half of the novel, in which she uses her characters as mouthpieces to explicate the complicated and tragic history of the Belgian Congo.
Despite these weaknesses, Kingsolver's fully realized, three-dimensional characters make The Poisonwood Bible compelling, especially in the first half, when Nathan Price is still at the center of the action. And in her treatment of Africa and the Africans she is at her best, exhibiting the acute perception, moral engagement, and lyrical prose that have made her previous novels so successful. --Alix Wilber
Book Description
In 1959, Nathan Price, a fierce, evangelical Baptist, takes his four young daughters, his wife, and his mission to the Belgian Congo -- a place, he is sure, where he can save needy souls. But the seeds they plant bloom in tragic ways within this complex culture. Set against one of the most dramatic political events of the twentieth century -- the Congo's fight for independence from Belgium and its devastating consequences -- here is New York Times-bestselling author Barbara Kingslover's beautiful, heartbreaking, and unforgettable epic that chronicles the disintegration of family and a nation.
Customer Reviews:
Thank you Barbara........2007-09-27
What can I say, Barbara Kingsolver is one of my favorite writers. She's witty, inventive, and lyrical, to say the least. Just blew my mind with this one. It's amazing how every sentence is so poetic and so fascinating from start to finish. Great story. Beautifully written. A masterpiece.
Quite an Experience.......2007-09-26
After reading this book, I feel like I myself have lived in the Congo. Some parts were annoying/slow (especially the chapters narrated by Adah in the beginning), but it's worth reading the entire thing just to get the experience of raw Africa. It's been over 6 months since I've read the book, but I still think about it from time to time and look at the comforts & conveniences around me in appreciation.
This is NOT a pro-religion, evangelistical novel, so don't get turned off by that aspect of the plot. Read it for the extremely trying experience of living, nay, surviving in Africa.
Classic.......2007-09-15
I love this story. I think Kingsolver did and amazing job of writing the book in 5 different voices. I thought it was really interesting- I learned a lot about the history of Africa. I think that the author paints a vivid picture of the area- I could picture the people and the places while I was reading. Occasionally the narration seems to get a little long-winded, but overall I really enjoyed reading it.
Convincing voices in the Poisonwood Bible.......2007-09-13
As a South African living in the United States, I identified with the American missionary family of the Poisonwood Bible but I also identified with the African people of the Congo with whom they learn to live. I admit that I relished somewhat the stunningly ill-prepared manner in which this traditional Southern family lands in the center of the Congo jungle, but soon found it impossible not to empathize with their situation. The book is narrated from the family's point of view, each member taking turns many times before the book finishes. I'm not usually a fan of this approach, since it so often prevents one from identifying strongly with any one character. However, each of the personalities in Poisonwood Bible is richly and convincingly presented, and one feels an immediate connection with each one. This is a phenomenal story of family trial, tragedy, and growth, set in a very real Africa far removed from the quaint, safari-infatuated misperception of those who have never felt real African soil between their toes. The characters are placed awkwardly in the throes of 1950s and 1960s revolution, disease, and bungled government; a situation that sadly seems to persist in the DRC today. Although this historical background is well portrayed, the book maintains a very personal tone - it is always about the characters themselves. The Congo slowly works its way into their blood, showing itself as beauty, anger, and indifference.
The Second Half is "worth" the First.......2007-09-12
I recall that the first half of the book was hard to read - a bit slow and hard to push through the different voices. But I can only vaguely recall this after completing the second half rather quickly. This is one of those books that should change your perspective - everything is a few inches sideways from here on out. I find myself listening differently, reading words other than the ones my neighbor might see, and intuiting issues and needs in a new way. I thought I was pretty "aware" before I read this book, but the long build, and the strong, personal, matter-of-fact discussion was wonderful.
Book Description
Weegee's New York: Photographs 1935-1960
Weegee's legendary camera recorded an unmatched pictorial chronicle of a legendary time. Weegee's New York is the New York of the thirties and forties, a city marked by the Great Depression, by unemployment and poverty, by mob violence and prostitution. He was the first news photographer allowed a police radio in his car. Racing through Manhattan's streets after midnight, he often beat the cops to the scene of the crime to shoot the pictures which would scream from the pages of the Daily News and the Daily Mirror next morning. They still jump from the page with a restless immediacy and intense nervousness that has never been surpassed. The 335 photographs collected in this new softcover reprint tell the astonishing story of New York during one of its most violent and exciting periods. The introductory essay is by the former editor of Art Forum, John Coplans.
Essay by Weegee
Weegee (1899-1968),was born Arthur Fellig in what is now a part of Poland and arrived in New York at the age of ten. During his ten years at Manhattan's police headquarters he published 5,000 photos that made him the most famous of a new breed of hardboiled news photographers. His book Naked City (later made into a film) was published in 1945, followed in 1953 by Naked Hollywood.
John Coplans, born in 1920 in England, immigrated to the US in 1960. In 1962 he founded the periodical Artforum serving as its editor until 1980. He was director of the Art Gallery of University of California at Irvine; senior curator at the Pasadena Art Museum; and director of the Akron Art Museum, Ohio. At age sixty he took up photography full-time.
335 duotone plates.
Customer Reviews:
The best of Mister Speed Graphic.......2004-06-09
With 335 photos, this large size paperback is one of the better books you'll find of Weegee's work. Divided into eighteen photographic chapters (with one image per page) it really is an impressive selection, especially as it covers his output from 1935 to 1960.
The chapter on crime has the largest selection (thirty-one) with the predictable dead and bloodied bodies surrounded by police and public. Weegee claimed he (and several Speed Graphic cameras) covered hundreds of murders for the New York tabloids, he knew that that the only thing that mattered to the 'tabs' were the headlines and photos, the story could fill any space that was left. The other chapters cover ordinary New Yorkers in mostly nighttime settings.
The perfect complement to this book is Miles Barth's 'Weegee's World' (ISBN 0821226495) which admittedly does have many of the same photos but also has three long essays about this unique photographer. I have another book about Weegee, a very poor reproduction of his 1945 title 'Naked City' (ISBN 0306812045) and again most of the photos are in the New York book.
***FOR AN INSIDE LOOK click 'customer images' under the cover.
tempus fugit.......2001-03-10
This book is amazing piece of amercian history. New York history. Frozen moments of ordinary people and their enviroment. Really must have one...
Average customer rating:
- Amazing photographs
- The Photographs Make The Book
- Brings back a great era in Baseball!
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Summer in the City: New York Baseball 1947-1957
Vic Ziegel , and
Claus Guglberger
Manufacturer: Harry N. Abrams
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
General
| Baseball
| Sports
| Subjects
| Books
History
| Baseball
| Sports
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Sports
| Subjects
| Books
New York
| State & Local
| United States
| Americas
| History
| Subjects
| Books
Sports
| Subjects
| Photography
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
ASIN: 0810943425 |
Book Description
Between 1947, when Jackie Robinson joined the Brooklyn Dodgers, and 1957, when the Dodgers and the New York Giants played their last season in the East, New York baseball teams appeared in ten World Series. In seven of those years, either the Giants or the Dodgers vied for the championship with the lordly Yankees. These were truly the glory years of New York baseball, when the city breathlessly followed the game in the tabloids rather than on the tube. And the New York Daily News, the nation's largest newspaper, had the best photographers, the best equipment, and the best field position to record the action, bringing the art of baseball photography to its highest pitch.
Accompanied by an evocative text by veteran sportswriter Vic Ziegel, the dramatic photographs (complete with their colorful original captions)-featuring such superstars as Robinson, Joe DiMaggio, Yogi Berra, Roy Campanella, Mickey Mantle, and Willie Mays-allow the reader to follow year by year the course of baseball's most exciting decade in the world's greatest city.
Customer Reviews:
Amazing photographs.......2007-01-17
The seminal book about the Golden Age of Baseball in New York. A must have for any baseball fan. The photograph selection by Claus Guglberger is sublime. I eagerly anticipate another release containing the photographs selected by this gifted photographer.
The Photographs Make The Book.......2004-07-09
There have been numerous books written on New York baseball, but, at least for me, it is the photographs that make this a unique baseball book. I have vivid memories of the World Series of the 1950's, and all except 1959 involved at least one of the teams in New York City. The New York Yankees and Brooklyn Dodgers series were classics, and will always be remembered. I enjoyed the descriptive writing of New York Daily News writer Dick Young. When Duke Snider made a wide turn at 3rd base in coming home, Young wrote, "Duke, who is a poor base-runner for a man of his superior speed, took the scenic route home...He was out by some 20 feet." Many of the photos brought back the names of players and umpires of my youth. The photographs illustrate how small the dugouts were in that era. Fans are predominantly dressed in suit coats, ties, and fedoras. Also of interest are photos of fans leaving the park via the playing field, and photographers near home plate photographing the action. Photographs of Ebbets Field and the Polo Grounds show views from above the playing field in addition to close ups of the center field area of the Polo Grounds and the center and right field areas of Ebbets Field with the advertising on the wall are also of interest. I am a fan of the Detroit Tigers, but I will always have precious memories of those historic New York teams in addition to the arenas they played in. The text is nice, but it is the photos that make this book unique.
Brings back a great era in Baseball!.......2004-05-25
You don't just have to be a fan of New York baseball to enjoy this wonderful photo-filled book showcasing the great Big Apple teams of the late 1940's to the late 1950's. This wonderful book containing superb photographs from the baseball archives of the New York Daily News, is like a mirror through time. The large photos, (dont you just hate small photos in large books), showcase the players, (stars or not), stadiums, but above all action surrounding the great New York teams of 1947-1957 with a small but no less interesting text explaining each one. The most enjoyable thing about the book for me were the full-page sized photos showing all the action in ballparks, some unfortunately no longer with us (Ebberts Field and the Polo Grounds) and the pre-renovated Yankee Stadium. The nuances of these parks with their crazy outfield angles and advertising boards gives us an appreciation of what it was like to play or watch baseball in them back then. The shots of the fans who populated these parks also tells a story, of rabid fan allegience and spirited optimism. Any baseball fan will love this book as part of their collection. There is a brief text opening the selection of photos for each year that may be short but this book let's the photos do the describing. A fabulous book!
Book Description
"Two years before I started drawing, my wife was run over by a subway train. Sounds really terrible, I know. But, well, this book is about how art and New York City saved my life."
When Danny Gregory's wife was severely injured, his life was changed in an instant. Searching about for meaning for what had happened to his little family, he began to create a richly illustrated journal of his life. Gregory as driven to record and comment on every aspect of his life, from dirty dishes to cathedrals, from hospital wards to life-drawing classes, from brunch with Hell's Angels to book shopping at the Strand.
This unique book chronicles his discovery of drawing, his wife's rehabilitation, his son's infancy, and the life of the city he loves. Funny, bittersweet, romantic, and perverse, Everyday Matters is an inspiration, an invitation to look for the beauty and significance in the details of our daily lives.
Customer Reviews:
great little gem of a book.......2007-09-23
love it, love it, love it !!!!
a wonderful inspiring little book.
perfect smaller size (6"x8") to carry along with your sketchbook to keep you encouraged in your drawing.
I expected more.......2007-04-08
I suppose I had some misperceptions of this book. I was assuming there would be more inspiration that would cajole me into journaling and artwork. I also thought is was he who was disabled - it was his wife. There was little mention of how his wife's diability figured into the whole pictue of his life. As a disabled person, I thought there would be some insight into overcoming disability to do what you want. I do however, love the way he draws and journals. In the end I saw this as a simple journal that anyone might have done. I still have his other book and I have higher hopes for that.
loved it!!.......2007-02-27
i loved it! i recived the book for valentines day and finished in a day...its very intresting to examine dannys drawing and learn about his life in nyc..
Interesting and sort of sad.......2007-01-30
Interesting story about the author's evolution into an artist. The entire book is made up of his sketches and writings during a particularly challenging time in his life. It is essentially his private art journal copied and put in a book.
Couldn't put it down! Great Book!.......2006-09-16
This book is actually the "textbook" for the pen and ink drawing class that I am taking. I bought it ahead of time and read it in 2 days! I had a hard time putting it down and now that I am finished I keep going back to it to discover the clever ways Mr. Gregory depicts life in the big city and abroad. What he has to say ranges from being dramatic to funny and interesting. He takes the every day things we take for granted and makes them into something worth taking a second look at. I am thinking of buying all of the books he writes.....This is good stuff!
Amazon.com
The massive New York 1960 is the third installment in a series covering the last 100 years of New York architectural history. Weighing almost eight pounds, it's a seemingly endless parade of images and information woven together into a fascinating tale of the changing urban landscape. The combination of political, social, and artistic commentary of the day culled largely from primary sources, along with sharp period photographs, provide a time machine's experience of the city that was. The historic tour begins with lower Manhattan and progresses uptown one neighborhood (and practically one building) at a time. With stories of buildings that were never built, teams of architects fired from projects, and the influence of the mayor's office, this chronicle offers amazing insight into how decisions were made and their impact on the city's life. The implementation of parking meters, the zoning laws to support retail on 5th Avenue, the movement of artists from Greenwich Village to what used to be Coenties Slip to industrial SoHo are a number of examples. For anyone interested in architecture, urban issues, or the history of New York City, New York 1960 should not be missed. --J.P. Cohen
Customer Reviews:
THE DARK AGES OF NYC ARCHITECTURE.......2007-01-22
I guess this book had to be written, it is a series afterall, but it is digusting what kind of buildings were built. Having said that, this is an excellent book and it is scholarly and the images are first rate, but lord these are for the most part terrible buildings that just about ruined the iconic Manhattan skyline, I guess at least we should be glad Jackie O, saved Pan Am from tearing down the breathtaking Grand Central Station, unfortunitely the same cannot be said for Penn Station, I think what you come away with from this book is, greedy developers, awful Mayors and the sinsister Robert Moses, it's a wonder the Empire State Building and Chrysler Building were not torn down.
One of the great series by Robert A. M. Stern.......2007-01-11
on the history of NY's architecture and great buildings.
You should own all of them.
An eight-pound masterpiece of architectural history.......2002-04-18
First of all, the book is just too darned big to handle comfortably. With over 1300 pages, I don't know whether to congratulate the authors on their thoroughness or criticize them for having no sense of self-restraint. This tome could have been divided into three separate volumes, and each would have been a substantial book in itself.
The epic length of the book allows the authors to go into incredible detail. The book is divided into chapters primarily by neighborhood. There are also chapters devoted to the topic of interior decoration, the 1964-65 World's Fair, "Beyond the Boroughs," "Historic Preservation," and "New York and the Arts." The numerous b&w photographs, averaging more than one per page, are stunning.
A chapter titled "Death by Development" walks the reader through the ideology of the era that led to public housing monstrosities, as well as middle-class housing of dubious aesthetic and structural integrity. This same chapter discusses proposals for air-raid shelters, some of which would have had expanses large enough to hold a nine-story building, as well as the 1945 incident in which a US military plane crashed into the Empire State Building. The same chapter shifts to transportation issues, and presents a 1951 proposal for an unconventional "people mover" under 42nd Street, and the beginning of construction in 1972 on the Second Avenue subway (which perhaps, will open sometime in my lifetime). All this in just one of seventeen chapters - gives you some idea of the expansiveness and thoroughness of this book.
Many readers will take special note of the eight pages devoted to the World Trade Center. This book was written before "9-11," and the book's coverage of the WTC is haunting, to say the least.
From our perspective, the era in question (1945-1976) constitutes the "dark ages" of urban planning and architecture. Yet, the beautiful period photographs and accompanying text immerse the reader in the aesthetic mentality of the era. This book is a masterpiece, and maybe later in the day I'll find the strength to move this eight pound book from my table to my desk.
AN excellent resource for Architects and Planners.......1999-05-19
A great book for the coffee table or the library. Concise desriptions of built projects as well as conceptual ideas for the City of New York. Focuses on individual neighborhoods as well as the city as a whole.
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