Reviews (3)

Homesick?
Born and raised in Lubec Maine, I grew to love the coast as if it were my own personal playground. As a young lad I would spend my days swimming in the chilly waters off my families private beach, and my nights roasting marshmellows over and open fire. When I was in my teens I went to work in the local sardine factory and spent many days dragging for scallops in the bay.

I moved away from Downeast Maine twenty years ago and I have missed it ever since. I miss the smell of the salt air and the nice cool breeze that always seems to be there. I miss the endless hay fields and the way the trees produce unheard of colors every fall. Most of all I miss the people. They are kind, honest, and carry an accent that could make anyone feel at home.

I bought the book Downeast Maine: A World Apart a month ago and I read it every day. The stories and black and white photos give the reader a true feeling for what it is like living in Downeast Maine. Reading it, I can almost smell the salt air and feel that unforgettable summer breeze. The book really brings me home again. It's wonderfull book!

Van Riper Shows Us The REAL Maine
A summer resident of Maine's easternmost corner, Frank Van Riper goes beyond clam shacks, country clubs and outlet malls to portray how people 'Down East' eke out a living and build a life.

Van Riper, a former White House correspondent for the New York Daily News ably handles both camera and notepad to record vivid, full-frame images of his neighbors. This is fundamentally a book about people, and he has clearly managed to transcend that putoffishness that Maine residents are known for to get their stories alongside their pictures. The text doesn't merely accompany, nor do the photos merely illustrate; they are inseparable components.

There is a timeless quality to these images of people, most seen at work. Only at times does a modern watch or a radar dome on a boat remind you that clams are still dug through back-breaking labor and lobster hauled up one or two at a time. The book was collected over a number of years, and italics note where the subject portrayed died between the portrait and publication -- and you feel the loss.

This is serious documentary, with more than a hint of Walker Evans and Sebastián Salgado, but with light touches as well. Van Riper devotes a page to the peculiar delight of Maine's own Grape Nuts ice cream, a confection that predates -- and in his view, outrates -- Ben and Jerry's chunky conglomerates.

A visually stunning series of what happens when a dead whale washes ashore in his small town of Kennebec closes out the book. The sharply mottled skin of the whale amid the wash-fade of a foggy illustrate the beauty of his corner of Maine, as Van Riper also tells us of hard choices a financially strapped, self-reliant community must face as it struggles to get rid of what is, after all, tons and tons of rotting flesh.

This sensitive portrayal proves that what it means to be from Maine has nothing to do with what bottled water you drink.

Lasting images from a superb photojournalist/writer/artist
Frank Van Riper captures, in his portraits of Maine, the people that he has come to know slowly (is there any other way in Maine?) through his photo excursions to the northeast.

His "moment" photographs are some of my favorites, including the photo of the boy at the pie-eating contest. It's an ageless photograph captured with precision timing and artful composition. These are traits of photographs throughout the book and share the essence of great documentary photojournalism--the ability to capture a simple (almost unseen) moment with artisitc and historic sensibilities. Van Riper captures this quiet beauty in medium format which lends itself to the superb reproductions.

Van Riper's fine images coupled with his words showcase his great ear for telling dialogue honed during his "other" career as a newspaper writer. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A Wonderful view of Newfoundland
I found this book while staying at a B&B in Newfoundland, and it was such a wonderful read that I had to run out and buy a copy to take home with me. With wonderful insights into the people of Newfoundland the authors use powerful images and the words of the Newfoundlanders themselves to tell the stories of the place. Alternately powerful and fun, this book is a must for anyone wishing to understand the lives of the people of Newfoundland and Labrador and their place in history and Canada. ... Read more

Book Description

Zelda is back.In the follow-up to her hilarious debut, Zelda Wisdom, Zelda returns to lead us down the doggy path to enlightenment with zany Zen koans and more of the laugh-inducing photographs that made her first book such a hit.This hilarious canine guru will lift your spirits and bring a smile to your face.The "Doggy Lama" dispenses Zenlike wisdom in her inimitable bulldog style.With a face everyone can love, a bikini-clad Zelda reminds us that appearances count for nothing."You are a soul with a body...not a body with a soul."Who knew that true Zen wisdom could be found in the form of a 60-pound bulldog?Zelda reminds us that "laughing at ourselves brings us closer to enlightenment than anything else."We would all do well to get in touch with our inner Zelda. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Zen-tastic!
The Dalai Lama himself could learn a few things from Zelda. . . I laughed out loud and couldn't put it down until I'd seen every photo-- Zelda is truly a remarkable dog and role model, and has something for everyone.

LOVED THE ZEND!!!
Every photo vignette is just fabulous! A brilliant collection. Here is a message for the BIG Z: Your new book, so full of ZEN. Outstanding, it rates a TEN! Arlene Millman, author of BOOMERANG - A MIRACLE TRILOGY (The tale of a remarkable Boston Terrier). ... Read more

Book Description

Known the world over for his iconic images of Che Guevara and Brasília, René Burri is one of the world’s greatest living photographers. Now, for the first time ever and featuring many never before published images, Burri’s remarkable and adventurous work is brought together in this career retrospective of over 400 duotone photographs. Edited and compiled by distinguished writer Hans-Michael Koetzle in close collaboration with Burri, this unprecedented retrospective is a history book of the major political events and key personalities of the 20th century seen through the eyes of one photographer. Nothing like this book on Burri has ever been published before, and it is a real coup for Phaidon to be the first to publish his entire career’s work.

A member of the prestigious Magnum photo agency, Burri is a photographer whose curiosity and humanity as a photographer have afforded him almost unrestricted access to the major events and personalities of the last fifty years. In this way, René Burri Photographs is a fascinating personal account of the major artists, politicians and personalities that Burri has made a part of his life. First achieving international recognition with the seminal photography book on post-WWII Germany Die Deutschen (The Germans) in 1962, René Burri has since become one of the most important figures in the history of photography, admired and respected by his peers for his sympathetic eye and his ability to capture larger-than-life personalities on film.

René Burri Photographs is the culmination of several years of scholarly research by distinguished writer Hans Michael Koetzle into Burri’s important contribution to reportage photography. In 21 thematically organized chapters, we accompany Burri across Europe to the Middle East, Vietnam, Brazil, Cuba and beyond: we visit Picasso, Le Corbusier, Yves Klein and Giacometti in their studios; we witness political figures such as Che Guevara in repose, and Fidel Castro at the helm. The book begins with an introduction that describes the history, politics and artistic influences that have coloured Burri’s work. Each of the 21 chapters is accompanied by colour-coded bands for easy reference (for example, Chapter 2 on Picasso is accompanied by blue bands; Chapter 14 on Germany, green bands). Each of the chapters begins with a 2-page essay which gives an overview of the images in that particular section, the time period and political climate, and the circumstances that drew Burri to ph! otograph the subject. In addition, each image in the book is accompanied by a caption detailing the place, year and event. The book is designed by prominent Swiss graphic designer Werner Jeker of ADN Design, Lausanne. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Francesco Clemente, who enlivened the New York art scene in the 1980s along with a handful of other image-conscious Italians, including Sandra Chia, is said to be a reclusive artist who guards his privacy, but this richly informative book makes that assertion difficult to believe. Clemente himself has always offered a good deal of autobiography to his viewers, with works that have explored his own visage (and other parts) with relentless interest and introspection. And now comes Francesco Clemente, filled with intimate pictures shot by his friend Luca Babini in Clemente studios from New York to New Mexico to Naples. Packed to bursting, the photographs show Clemente working away, with wife, kids, and dogs in tow. With its pictorial richness--paint-spattered floors, trampled rags, stacked canvases, raw-edged, unstretched paintings stapled to huge walls, encrusted studio shoes, and scores of photographs of works in progress--this book will be devoured by other artists, who will turn the pages in a lather of envy, not necessarily for Clemente's fame and success, but for the huge windows and high ceilings of his various work spaces.

Clemente is a fecund artist, and there are many wonderful shots of his art--whole walls and tables full of it--that make a succinct statement correlating productivity and achievement. Clemente has contributed a kind of prose poem for the first part of the book, in which he discusses being a painter, and there is also a rambling essay by art writer Rene Ricard on artists' studios from ancient Egypt to the Renaissance. But the pictures are the point of this book, and they handsomely reward the reader's attention. They constitute an invitation to spend time--years, in fact--with a painter whose inventiveness, ambition, and style have made him one of the most successful of his time. --Peggy Moorman ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Actually Superior to a Retrospective
For those intrigued by Clemente, this may be the best book. The huge retrospective volume published from the Guggenheim exhibit does not necessarily contain as many of his better works as it should and can really leave you frustrated. There are paintings in here that are quite beautiful and they are often enhanced by the photographs that show them in the studio context. The photography is excellent and the book well done. Highly recommended and a good deal to boot.

fransesco clemente: painter of life.
he's an amazing artist, one of the best ever. period. i could sit here and describe for you, in excrutiating detail, the appeal of his use of color/contrast, the manner in which his forms are represented, and other such compliments. however, i will cut myself short, and simply say that his work propogates emotion like no other, and i hope everyone gets a chance to look at his creative vision at least once before they die. this book is a good way to make that happen.

A rare, informative glimpse at a talented, reclusive artist.
Lucia Babini's photos accompany Ricard's essay on the life of Francesco Clemente, published simultaneously with a major retrospective at the Guggenheim Museum. Splendid full-page color photos of his works provides in-depth access to the Italian painter, creating a catalog which stands alone and provides a rare glimpse of the reclusive artist.

great insight on a life of a contemporary artist
stunning pictures offering an intimate view on clemente. A truly beautiful book.

Francesco Clemente teaches us to "think" art.
This book listed as, "Francesco Clemete" by Francesco Clemente isactually titled, "India" by Francesco Clemente. It explores the philosophy and thought of being alive in a concious world, by coupling art work by Clemente with poetry and spiritual sayings from people from Allen Ginsberg toAntonin Artaud. Clemente himself chose the writers who accompany his artwork, giving the book a nice personal insight into Clemente's own inspiration. ... Read more

Book Description

Speak Truth to Power presents an inspiring rainbow of heroes from more than thirty-five countries and five continents. In searing and uplifting interviews, veteran human rights defender Kerry Kennedy Cuomo examines the quality of courage with women and men who are dramatically changing the course of events in their communities and countries.

Imprisoned, tortured, and threatened with death, they speak with compelling eloquence on subjects to which they have devoted their lives and for which they have been willing to sacrifice -- from free expression to the rule of law, from women's rights to religious liberty, from environmental defense to eradicating slavery, from access to capitol to the right to due process.

Accompanying the interviews are a powerful series of portraits by world-renowned photographer Eddie Adams. This is his first book, representing two years of crisscrossing the globe to make these deeply felt and insightful images of courageous individuals, including the internationally celebrated, such as Vaclav Havel, Baltasar Garzón, Helen Prejean, Marian Wright Edelman, and Nobel Prize Laureates the Dalai Lama, Desmond Tutu, Elie Wiesel, Oscar Arias Sánchez, Rigoberta Menchú Tum, José Ramos-Horta, and Bobby Muller. But the vast majority of the defenders are unknown and (as yet) unsung beyond their national boundaries, such as former sex slave and leading abolitionist Juliana Dogbadzi of Ghana, domestic violence activist Marina Pisklakova of Russia, mental disability rights advocate Gabor Gombos of Hungary, and more than thirty others.

Speak Truth to Power is accompanied by a major exhibition opening at The Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., then traveling nationally, beginning in January 2001 at the Newseum, New York. The authors also plan a fully integrated Web Site as well as an education and advocacy campaign by Amnesty International.

In addition, a theatrical presentation, written by Ariel Dorfman, based on the stories featured in the book, will be performed by internationally known actors, including Glenn Close, Edward James Olmos, Sigourney Weaver, Alfre Woodard, and others, opening at the J. F. Kennedy Center, September 19, 2000.
... Read more

Reviews (7)

Beautiful, Beautiful Book-Truly a Living Bible
I stumbled onto this book in the Lincoln library in Massachusetts and fell in love with it instantly because with all of the talk about terrorism it gives one hope to see that there are people who are brave enough to do something about it in whatever niche of the world they find themselves in. This book is more like a catalog of 51 person's feats , it's not a narrative, and despite the gruesome cover photo, this book is a perfect piece for a coffee table. Something to talk about.

I'll let Ms. Cuomo tell you about its contents. Here are some excerpts from her introduction:

"In a world where there is a common lament that there are no more heroes, too often cynicism and despair are perceived as evidence of the death of moral courage. That perception is wrong. People of great valor and heart, committed to noble purpose, with long records of personal sacrifice, walk among us in every country of the world. I have spent the last two years traveling the globe to interview the fifty-one individuals from nearly forty countries and five continents included in these pages, people whose lives are filled with extraordinary feats of bravery. I've listened to them speak about the quality and nature of courage, and in their stories I found hope and inspiration, a vision of a better world."

She closes with these thoughts:

"I grew up in the Judeo-Christian tradition where we painted our prophets on ceilings and sealed our saints in stained glass. They were superhuman, untouchable, and so we were freed from the burden of their challenge. But here on earth, people like these and countless other defenders are living, breathing human beings in our midst. Their determination, valor, and commitment in the face of overwhelming danger challenge each of us to take up the torch for a more decent society. Today we are blessed by the presence of these people. They are teachers, who show us not how to be saints, but how to be fully human."

Excellent, touching reading
I bought this book for the sole purpose of a class where I was required to do some outside reading. This book was on our recommended reading list. I read the entire book, only one story was required. It was astonishing how these people change the world. I was moved by these stories.

almost religious in its power
The stories and photographs are deeply moving profiles of several of the most courageous people in the world. There are few terms to describe the total power, since I turn to this work on many occasions to gain some inspiration.

For someone not immediately interested in the field of human rights, the work is probably not quite as affecting, as personal stories about those who are involved in human rights will be unlikely to move the unconcerned. "Speak Truth to Power" is essential sustenance for the converted.

Shallow Treatment of a Vital Subject
The people described in this book are true heroes, and their stories make me feel humbled and ashamed. But the book attempts to describe 50 different people. Each person gets 3-6 pages, and at least one of the pages is a photograph, leaving room for only a short, unsatisfying glimpse of each life story.

The flyleaf states that "'Speak Truth to Power' is accompanied by a major exhibition opening at The Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., then traveling nationally." It almost appears that the story is secondary to the photographs--a pity.

Stories of important and incredible strength and vision
This is an inspirational and important book. The biographical portraits of the human rights activists are compelling, and their stories shocking, infuriating, sad, and ultimately inspirational. These are amazing people - prevailing against enormous odds. You read it in awe of the subjects, and their often appalling stories. The black and white photographic portraits are respectful, serious, and appropriate. The one thing I would change about this book is its "coffee-table-book" presentation. It's not an "art" book, there is intensity of feeling and action in its stories, and so is really too important to browse. In my view the big (and expensive) format invites a sort of readerly casualness that is at odds with the subject. There is outsized courage in these stories, but a surfeit of human suffering and cruelty, too. I wanted to be able to take it with me, and the size of this book makes that impractical. So I hope that it will eventually be published in a more accessible format. Five Amazon stars for excellence in all ways but that one. ... Read more

Book Description

Pornstar is a mesmerizing, definitive examination of life at the epicenter of Americas multibillion-dollar sex entertainment industry.

When Ian Gittler began photographing porn stars, his intent -- however suspect -- was to glamorize and legitimize their lives and work in the same way top photographers generally portray the porn stars' mainstream Hollywood counterparts. Girder envisioned a celebrity coffee-table book with gorgeous. enticing photography that would provoke a reevaluation of fame in our culture.

But as the author journeyed into the surprisingly accessible "underground" world of porn, his glossy, conceptual approach gave way to one of grim resolve. Gittler couldn't ignore the rapidly accumulating evidence of abuse and emotional disconnect. By the time Savannah -- the most famous XXX film star of her generation -- committed suicide, he felt compelled to address the heartbreak and fragile humanity he was learning firsthand are at tile core of this subculture.

Gittler forged relationships with his subjects that irrevocably changed him, and discovered that the world of porn is not only a product of mainstream society, but a parallel universe where all the challenges of emotional intimacy facing humans at tile end of the twentieth century exist.

Pornstar is all extraordinary marriage of memoir, photography, and investigative journalism; its narrative -- in running text and more than one hundred stunning photographs -- spans more than five years. Pornstar is violent, funny, tragic, and uncompromising: a totally unprecedented portrait of tile men and women -- the stars -- who populate the terrain of America's porn industry. ... Read more

Reviews (28)

PORNSTAR MERELY TOUCHES THE SURFACE
Anyone who has seen the movie Boogie Nights knows the simple truth...IT'S NOT FUN BEING A PORNSTAR. Ian Gittler makes that point painfully clear in the very early passages of his coffee-table book Pornstar. Unfortunately once we have gained this knowledge there is not much more we can learn from our brief touches with the lives of the stars.

The Good - Gittler does a nice job of interviewing a wide range of stars and starlets. Everyone from Nina Hartley to Sharon Mitchell to Joey Silvera to Jon Dough to Tom Byron to many many more. His pictures are fine...some even haunting. My mind always comes back to a photo of one starlet who is on set and desperately looking through the lights to meet her boyfriends' eyes...even when she still has "business at hand" with an unknown partner.

The Bad - Gittler is still an outsider and just doesn't have enough skill to ask the tough questions or to find the motivation in the lives of the stars. A lot of time was also devoted to Savannah (who the author is obviously enamoured with). I myself was more curious about the pictures of several stars who received no mention in the actual text...people like Victoria Paris, Asia Carerra, or Lisa Lipps who have nice photos but beyond that we learn nothing of their lives both in-and-out of the world of adult cinema. And there are numerous big-name adult stars who don't get so much as a reference.

There is a large percentage of people who are both interested and fascinated by the world of adult movies. Raw Talent by Jerry Butler does a better job of providing some perspective into this field (albeit from one person's point of view). Hopefully in the near future we'll get a book that allows us entry into the lives of the stars...and digs a little deeper than what we can merely see with our eyes.

Wonderful, Sad Exploration into the U.S. Pornography Scene
_Pornstar_ is a wonderful, saddening excursion into the behind-the-scenes world of American pornography. Although centered in southern California and New York, American pornography affects all Americans, drives the economy, and pushes technology (would CD-ROM's and videotape be as popular without the intial pioneers that pornography creates?).

Gittler involved himself in ways that question his journalistic integrity, yes, but he is honest, almost too much so. The heartbreak I felt as I read the final chapters of this book carried over from the pain in the lives of the pornstars Gittler documents.

Gittler is up-close and personal with notable porn actors, actresses, and directors: Jon Dough, Savannah, and John Stagliano, to name a few.

This is not a book that promotes pornography; Gittler even refused to give permission to use one of his images of Nina Hartley for mouse pads, although he probably would have profitted nicely from the sales. Gittler, as much as readers may be disappointed with him for what he does in his documentary research, is a person searching for truth, not a cheap thrill or a quick buck.

Gittler is an accomplished photographer. His portraits seek to reveal the true, often hidden character of the subject. He uses black and white images, "Hollywood lighting," available light, and shallow depth of field to a wonderful advantage; I never thought that Ron Jeremy looked more sinsiter than in Gittler's shot of him and a devil's trident or that Nina Hartley could be a female nude, not a naked woman. Great technique and imagination make Gittler one of my favorite photographers and someone I would like to work with some day.

Aside from a few explicit photographs of intercourse on the set, this is a book suitable for classroom discussion or your home coffee table. The portraits are of nudes, yes, but tastefully done and REAL, gritty.

_Pornstar_ is a must read for anyone who wants to understand this highs and pitfalls of this industry.

Absolutely No Depth to the Subject
Ian Gittler manages the near impossible - writing a boring book about a subject most people would consider intrinsically interesting. The pornstars are treated very superficially and one has no better understanding of them, or the reasons they got into porn in the first place, after finishing the book than one did before initially picking it up. Instead, the author focuses on his reactions to the pornstars, as if he were somehow of some great interest to the reader. Jeez, given the author's self-centeredness, no wonder he could not get laid by any of the porno chicks. I give it two stars because at least the pictures are pretty good.

I Liked It
Sure, this is an interesting and entertaining story. I couldn't tell where fact ended and fiction began. I was disappointed, being someone who has been both in front of and behind the camera in the adult film world, because it read more like a Hollywood-style script proposal. Again, I did like the book, but it was a big let down because it read like every other book written about this industry as it played to all the "hot buttons" and stereotypes. I was surprised by a little-know book titled Cut Throat Business because it depicts the real inner workings of this industry. So if you by this book, I also recommend that you by the other too, you won't be disappointed and you'll get a broader picture of this intriguing industry.

Valuable as a cure for Porn Addicts
If you have a porn addiction or know someone who is obsessed by porn, get him this book. This book's chief virtue is not its black-and-white pictures but its honesty. I was about to date someone, lets call her Heather, who came from the stripper/porn world and it allowed me to understand her mood shifts, drug problems and difficulty committing to even just a normal date --once I told her that I wasnt rich. A self-destructive cycle was at work in a woman who wanted to break out of it...

Very few women in this world, such as Nina Hartley, seem to form normal relationships; most are emotionally abused as children (usually raped by a relative) and enter adulthood still damaged and get further damaged by this profession. Savannah committed suicide and this photographer did nothing to help; he seemed as awed of her as did the friends of Elvis before his death by prescription drugs.

You will never look at these impossibly beautiful women again in the same way. Instead of desiring them, you may pity them and wish to help them out of their self-destructive cycle of sex for money -- that's what it is, after all: prostitution of the self on film. These people desperately need the love of a person who cares about them, to fill their emptiness and to stop them from becoming another tragedy like Elvis.

Such honesty helped cure me of my obsession for these women. They are so beautiful still but most are tragically destined to end up on the scrap heap of discarded flowers whose blooms have faded. After reading this book, I just desire to help these women if I can.

Buy it and it may help you (or your friend) also cure their "supermodel porn" addiction as well. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Mostly establishment propoganda
First, I am in no way an apologist for the Japanese or the atrocities they committed before and during WWII. The official Japanese versions of events such as Nanking and the Korean "comfort" women and the people who perpetrate them are in as much denial as the people who defend the atomic bombs as being a military necessity. The winners don't necessarily write history-the textbook writers write it. And for the record, I do live and work in Japan, but having read many books on the subject, I have to view this book as being extremely biased toward the "establishment" version. Most of the Japanese I know are deeply ashamed of the horrors committed by their countrymen.

As for those who criticize "revisionist historians", of which the authors of this book obviously are not, I would ask, what other type of good historian is there? History is not static. It does change. Even if a historian finds evidence that corroborates the "establishment" view, they still have in a fashion "revised" history in that they have added to it. As any new evidence becomes available (e.g., from the FOIA), historians have to revise (these ideas were garnered from "Hiroshima in America" by Lifton and Mitchell. Also, isn't it funny, one never hears of "revisionist geologists," for example-guess they're too politically boring). In defense of the authors, at least they admit their bias from the beginning.

Onto the book, I rate it as a "2" not because of what it says (ok, some of what it says) but mostly for what it does not say, and, more importantly, what it does not show. Granted, many of the photos in the book are powerful, and should be shown--thus the "2". However, most that show the devastation of the bombs focus on the architectural damage, not the human damage. The extremely small percentage of photos that show victims are not extremely difficult to view and in no way show the vast horrors experienced by the victims. And yes, they were victims. Almost all were civilians, and contrary to a claim in the book, there were American victims in both cities, both POWs and American-Japanese who were in Japan at the start of the war. Both of these groups have had incredible difficulty in getting aid from either country after the war, as neither side wishes to claim responsibility.

Several of the photos do appear to have been doctored in one way or another. The most obvious one is on page 149, which purports to show a nurse with a group of orphans from the bombing of Kumamoto (I have no reason to deny this claim), in which the background is completely blacked-out. It is not made clear if the authors did this or the picture they received/found was already this way. Unfortunately, unlike scores of other pictures in which they offer commentary, no explanation is given for this. The only evidence of its origin is in the "Photo credits" section which credits one of the authors, Goldstein, and William Hendricks. This one instance severely undermines their version, in my humble opinion because it so clearly illustrates their bias. Why would a "photographic history", which takes great pains on many other occasions to explain and bring notice to other photographs, leave such a questionable one untouched?

The text of the book also avoids much of which has been shown to be true. As a scholarly document, the book is horrible. It does not use footnotes or endnotes so that independent verification can occur. It offers only a "brief bibliography" which is obviously tilted toward their bias.

For example, while the report of the US Strategic Bombing Survey is cited several times, the authors fail to include this VERY important quotation: "...certainly prior to 31 December 1945, and in all probability prior to 1 November 1945, Japan would have surrendered even if atomic bombs had not been dropped, even if Russia had not entered the war, and even if no invasion had be planned or contemplated." The Japanese were beat. They knew it, we knew it, and the only thing holding up a surrender was the assurance of the emperor--which we gave them and which we probably shouldn't have.

Basically, the book fails on many levels. Again, it doesn't really show the true horror inflicted upon human beings. It would have been rightly justified in showing the human suffering caused by the Japanese, but that would have meant in some way admitting that the US was wrong in that it was militarily unjustified. It is not a scholarly work, as it offers not chance to verify/discredit their claims. It is not a history book as it is so *extremely* biased and completely refuses to challenge the claims against its stance. I would have much more respect for it if it would take on some of the "alternative" views. It is not a photographic history, at least not in a *complete* sense, in that it leaves out more than it shows.

Read these books, and if you can dispute their claims, write your own:

Hiroshima in America by Lifton and Mitchell
The Decision to Use the Atomic Bomb by Alperovitz (the best and most complete of the ones I've read)
Hiroshima by Takaki

Finally, I believe that by saying the atomic bombs ended WWII takes credit away from the people who truly did end it-the soldiers in the Pacific theatre. Their contribution is diminished every time the bombs are given credit for the end of the war.

Chilling
I just received this book in the mail today, however I have all ready read half of it and have found it very stirring.
Before my recent studies of Hiroshima and Nagasaki I did not have any idea of the devestation that went on over there. This is the most visual account I've seen to date.
A chilling account to one of the worst mistakes in American history.

The Choice That Saved a Million Lives
THE ONLY BOOK OF IT'S TYPE!!! The complete pictorial history of the weapon that changed the way mankind thinks of his enemy and war. Goldstein, in previous books, has given the world the most complete picture of the start of the War in the Pacific,by telling us both sides of how and why the events occurred. Now he ends the war with the Manhatten project and the dropping of the two a-bombs. This book is the only one I know of that presents the effects on Nagaski, the forgotten city. As Pearl Harbor and Hiroshima have become SISTER CITIES you need to have "Rain of Ruin" as the definitive companion to your Pearl Harbor collection. ... Read more

Reviews (6)

GREAT BOOK!!!!
It doesn't get any more real than this!! I really enjoyed this book. It lets you really get to know the people in the book who are real and not just some made up characters. I hope to see more of these type of books from Joseph Rodriguez. I also like the idea that someone made above about the author doing an update to this book. That would be great!!!

Finally the truth
Finally someone writes a book and tells the truth i grew up in East los and believe me it was hard but something we chose,we chose to gangbang and finally someone was real about it and wrote this book showing the way it really is and what we really go threw.........THANKS,VBTP

The Same Neighborhood
I live in East L.A., and I know two of the young guys that were in the book. This is what life for us is really like.Im 19, and the guys that came out in the book are around 22 now. I think that this guy has come a really long way and hopefully when he looks back at this book he will realize that he has turned into a better and smarter person.The author has my support in whatever he does. To come here to the neighborhood and write about what goes on in here is opening society's eyes to the everyday struggles and pressures that our young Chicano men have to go through. Behind every picture that Joseph has taken there is a story,and the people that live through it are the authors. I am sure that Joseph has some how helped these guys, because when I first met Porky the first thing he told me was that Pony and him had came out in a book!I think that this book should be updated and see how everyone is doing now.I recommend this book to anyone that wants to see some of the hardships of life.Pony died after this book was made but his smile and memory are always with me.When you see his face in this book don't think of it as another gang member, but as someone who was sill a kid that got caught up in the gang life.

Excellant portrayal of gang life.
Mr. Rodriguez does a masterful job of showing the reader the very human side of people who are traditionally depicted as inhumane animals. I lost somebody very close to me to gang violence, I myself grew up in such a setting. Mr. Rodriguez not only offers hope for the people who are in the barrio, but for people who do not live in the barrio he offers an understanding of the pathology behind gangs. Ultimately the author is able to show us that "gang" kids are America's kids, and the way to help them is not to ignore them, or lock them up, but to show them love, understanding, and a way out.

IT WAS GREAT
PROPS LUIS FOR FINNALY TELLING IT LIKE IT IS. FINALLY SOMEONE SHOWED HOW HARD IT IS FOR US LATINOS TO LIVE IN THE GHETTOS.TO ALL WHO DON'T KNOW WHAT IS LIKE TO LIVE DOWN AT THE GHETTOS YOU ALL NEED TO READ THIS. GANGS ARE EVERYONES PROBLEM AND SOONER OR LATER IS GOING TO REACH PEOPLE THAT THINK THERE KIDS WOULDN'T GET INVOLVE. LUIS TELLS IT LIKE IT IS. I KNOW WHAT IS LIKE I LIVE IN CHI-TOWN AND EVEN DO I AIN'T IN CALIFAS, I KNOW WHAT IS LIKE. I'VE SEEN MY FRIENDS GET KILLED, SHOT AND JUMPED. THIS BOOK IS GREAT TO WHOEVER WANTS TO KNOW HOW IT REALLY GOES DOWN IN THE BARRIO. ... Read more

Book Description

National Geographic The Photographs is a captivating, full-color presentation of National Geographic magazine’s best and most memorable photographs of the last 25 years, the facts behind them, and the stories of the men and women who took them.

Book Description

Through two award-winning National Public Radio documentaries, and now this powerful book, LeAlan Jones and Lloyd Newman have made it their mission to be loud voices from one of this country's darkest places, Chicago's Ida B. Wells housing project. Set against the stunning photographs of a talented young photographer from the projects, Our America evokes the unforgiving world of these two amazing young men, and their struggle to survive unrelenting tragedy. With a gift for clear-eyed journalism, they tell their own stories and others, including that of the death of Eric Morse, a five-year-old who was dropped to his death from the fourteenth floor of an Ida B. Wells apartment building by two other little boys.

Sometimes funny, often painful, but always charged with their dream of Our America, LeAlan Jones and Lloyd Newman reach out to grab your attention and break your heart. ... Read more

Reviews (14)

If you liked the "City of Joy" you'll love this book!
LeAlan, Lloyd and John give readers a view of life in the projects that should stir all of us to action. Their simple and understandable conversations bring to life the problems and challanges faced by their families and neighbors. Anyone interested in learning more about the plight of the inner city should read this book. Not because it proposes any grand plans for fixing the problem, but because it gives the reader a view into a world rarely, if ever, encountered by most Americans. LeAlan, especially, has a gift for conversation that will leave readers asking "Why has this been allowed to happen?" In a country as prosperous as ours, no one should have been left to fend for themselves in this manner.

Stole my breath
"Our America" was assigned reading for my course in Child Social Policy. It grabbed me from page one and I could not put it down until it was through (and then I read parts over again). LeAlan and Lloyd walk you down the streets of Chicago and let you have a little peek into their reality -- a world where violence and death are a part of every day life, and instead of focusing on grades in school, children must worry about survival. These young men represent so many children with talents and dreams and potential who are raised in an infertile, even poisonous environment. I wish everyone would read this book and realize that "America" shouldn't change when you cross the tracks.

Powerful first-person account
This remarkable firsthand account of life in Chicago's troubled public housing is well worth reading. Armed with a free tape recorder, teenagers Lealan Jones and Lloyd Newman went on assignment for National Public Radio at age 13 in 1993 and again in 1996. Jones and Newman interviewed relatives, neighbors, friends and each other about life in the notorious Ida B. Wells public housing. Readers sense the tragedy and hopelessness of life in the projects, as well as the hope and sense of community that also exists. Jones and Newman also report on the aftermath of the tragic killing of Eric Morse, a 5-year old who was thrown from a 14th floor window (for refusing to steal) in a crime that made national headlines. Many will prefer these firsthand accounts to the drier writings of sociologists and other outside "experts." The editors appear to have altered the black street language into a somewhat more "standard" English, but the words retain their power. Jones and Newman did an outstanding job, and prove once again that impressive people often come from humble backgrounds.

OUR AMERICA has been made into an HBO movie, Newman apparently survived a dangerous beating (unrelated to this book), and Jones has even taught this book to high school students - he even lists his email address in a review in these web pages. This book is concise, readable, and very affecting.

Amazing
This is amazing it really tells the story of life for inter city children in Chicago it holds nothing back everyone should read this book

Incredible living history book
Take two boys from the worst ghetto in Chicago. Give them a microphone and have them describe their life and surroundings. This book is the result. It is appalling what conditions are like there. Imagine a toddler being dropped out of a window because of drugs. Read about the "shorties" who run drugs. This was sad and compelling drama. ... Read more

Book Description

Haviv’s unforgettable photographs are collected in BLOOD AND HONEY: A Balkan War Journal (TV Books; November 15, 2000). Chuck Sudetic, the leading correspondent for the New York Times in Yugoslavia for much of the conflict, provides historical, political and cultural context in a penetrating essay, shedding light on the tragic cycles of war that have engulfed the Balkans over the past century. Internationally renowned author David Rieff (Slaughterhouse: Bosnia and the Failure of the West) offers an acute and impassioned testimonial of BLOOD AND HONEY and the importance of witness. Bernard Kouchner, founder of the Nobel Prize-winning Doctors Without Borders and the present-day governor of Kosovo, writes with vigorous morality about the importance and implication of the past on the future of the Balkans. This war journal is further augmented by a chronology of the conflict and quotations from victims, perpetrators, political figures, and international observers that provide alternative and opposing voices about the war. The book is an enduring testament to the horrors that the Serbs, Croats, Bosnians, and Kosovar Albanians perpetrated against each other as the result of ancient enmities and modern political manipulation. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Great photos. Poor text.
I have always enjoyed Haviv's beautiful photographs. He has an incredible eye. But the text in this book is very poor. Sudetic comes across as a Yugo-nostalgic fool. Once again the writer uses myths from World War Two as justification for the present day conflict. If we are going to bring up WW2 then lets also bring up Serb duplicity and collaboration with the Nazis. (See the Nedic regime). As well as the whole slaughter of non-Serbs, primarily Muslims and Croats by the Chetnik forces of Serb General Mihajlovic, prior to 1941. The writer does not take into account Communist Tito's massacres at Bleiburg, and the death camps such as Goli Otok and Gradiska. (For comparisons see Pinochet). Yugoslavia was not a utopian dream. It was a vicious state ruled with an iron fist and it was bound to fall apart. It was a regime ruled by one ethnic group, the Serbs, and several non-Serb cronies who were die-hard Communists. War was tragically inevitable. How could it not be, when the Serb leader Milosevic and other Serb intellectuals, wanted to carve out a Greater Serbia. (See Memorandum from the Serb Academy of Arts and Sciences). And almost succeeded. What was unforseen was the West's desperate attempt to keep Yugoslavia whole. This goes back to interest and types like former Sec. of State Lawrence Eagleburger having money/investments in the region.
What gives larger nations the right to 'allow' smaller nations autonomy? Thank God these countries are now independent. We can only hope the illegally annexed provinces of Vojvodina and Kosova can finally break free from Serb repression in the coming years.
Haviv, next time get a better writer who knows more than the usual regurgitated Communist rhetoric. I mean would you write a book on the Ukraine with a Soviet?

A photographer's search for the limelight
What can be said of a person who hangs around a gang of killers for years? Ron Haviv has done just this. Fear and death become trivialized when expensive and stylized books become available for the commercial market.
There are photographs that exist from the past that document murder. These photographs were made by the murderers themselves in order to celebrate their deeds or by the victims in an attempt to warn the world of the horrors that had taken place.
Haviv was neither a victim nor a spy taking photographs on the sly from the distance. Haviv was in the middle of this carnage. He was the court photographer for a twisted band of murderers, winning their confidence over a period of years. He did not attempt to stop the crimes, he photographed them instead. He did not run from this vicious mob but instead he chose to remain with them.
In the book he is referred to as having been brave. I choose to think of him as an opportunist of the highest degree. Shame!!

Coffee Table Book with a Twist
It's hard top describe or explain, but the very impact of the horrific photos and the tender essays which accompany them add substantially to the overall beauty of the work. This is definitely something to leave on the coffee table, with the expectation of rousing some stirring (possibly controversial) conversation.

Haviv's displaying a tremendous ability to see through the "fog of war" that has routinely plagued journalists (photojournalists and written word journalists) since the American Civil War. His eye for the poignant photo speaks, as a picture is supposed to, thousands of words; his words paint the pictures far more deeper than what the superficial eye can see.

This is as important a document of the Balkan War, or of war in general, as has ever been put to print. The price of the book should not be considered too daunting - the price of war, however, should be.

Into the World of War
The compelling pictures of Ron Haviv's book are a historical document of a war whose atrocities have been compared to those of World War II. Haviv takes us through a wild and vivid journey in the pages of his Balkan War Journal, revealing the kind of passion and emotion in his images that make it impossible not to see the photographer within the photograph. The essays which accompany the pictures work as an introspective supplement for making the Balkan war more poignant to the reader. These essays, along with the text chronology of the war, are key in differentiating this collection of photographs from an ordinary photobook and helping the reader understand the order of events. As such, this book serves as not merely a journal, but more importantly a historical record.

Blood and Honey is the window through which we can witness the tragic reality of the inhabitants of the former Yugoslavia. Moreover, it is a reminder to all of us that there are those that choose to go to war and there are those that have no choice. Reading Blood and Honey it is clear that Haviv is one of the brave souls that never had a choice. Definitely get this book. ... Read more

Book Description

For the past ten years Jonathan Moller has photographed communities uprooted by war in Guatemala. The result is Our Culture Is Our Resistance, a collection of portraits taken during that decade, revealing stories of life and death, of hope and despair, and of struggles for survival, respect, and truth. The beauty and strength of Moller's photographs and the accompanying texts not only document and preserve the faces and events associated with this land and its history, but also display for the viewer the humanity and dignity of these largely Mayan indigenous peoples. Featuring one hundred forty-seven tritone portraits, Our Culture Is Our Resistance also includes a preface by Guatemalan Nobel Peace Laureate Rigoberta Menchú Tum;short essays by Ricardo Falla, Francisco Goldman, and Susanne Jonas; and prose and poetry by Humberto Ak'abal, Heather Dean, Julia Esquivel, Eduardo Galeano, Francisco Morales Santos. In addition, the book includes testimonies and reflections by Guatemalan community members and survivors, as well as statements by , Eduardo Galeano, photographer Sebastião Salgado, and William F. Schulz, Executive Director of Amnesty International USA. Among the sponsors and official endorsers of Our Culture Is Our Resistance are Amnesty International, the Soros Foundation, Global Exchange, The Nation Institute, the Photo Review, Witness for Peace, and Cultural Survival. Exhibition at The Redux gallery, New York, November 11-December 1, 2004 ... Read more

Book Description

Reviews (7)

Heartbreaking
I am speechless. The book is amazingly grueling. Rather than an attack on Juarez, it is an attack, a challenge to our humanity, hoping that we wake up and see the horrors so that we may stop them.

Distorted, pessimistic view of Cd. Juarez
This book focuses on all the ugly and evil aspects of this border town, and omits anything positive about the place. If you are a reader who has not spent considerable time working or living in Cd. Juarez, this book will grossly distort reality and scare you from setting foot into Mexico. I almost want to write a photo-book myself of all the virtues of the place. Yes, Juarez has it's share of problems, but as the citizens will tell you, things are always getting better. The writing seems very politically motivated, and definitely one-sided. I think someone could write a book just as disturbing while only focusing on slums in american cities. This book doesnt give Cd. Juarez a fair shake. But if you like photos of dead bodies, you will still enjoy this book.

Painfully real pictures
I've twice been to the Colonia's of Cd. Juarez. I have not, thank God, witnessed the violence.

I have seen the poverty.

The photographs in "Juarez, the laboratory of our future" are painful to view. The work of skilled local photographers, the pictures jump from the pages and into your heart. Life in a Colonia is a nightmare.

As the text makes clear, the causes of the poverty and violence are complex. But it is certain that we, the consumers of cheap goods, are adding to the pain when we buy the product output of Juarez, but bar the producers from escaping their Hell. The people in the Colonias are living lives very the close to those suffered by WWII slave laborers in Europe and elsewhere.

Where are the liberation forces?

the tradgedy of Juarez now has faces and names
In picture and word, the ugliness is now real. The stories will make you think: peace and justice, what have I done to make it this way? Can I sit by while my brothers and sisters suffer?

Ground Zero
Driving south to El Paso you come over a rise and the first thing you see is a vast sprawling city choking the Rio Grande valley. If you were on vacation and had never been there before, you would think El Paso is a much larger city than what your map indicates.

But as you descend further and draw nearer you notice the rat maze of shacks covering the hillside along the valley and realize it looks like no other American city you have ever seen before. Then you grasp the reality.

The hillside is Mexico. The rat maze of shacks is a cardboard colonia. The city, of course, is Juárez. Charles Bowden calls it "the laboratory of our future," where free-marketers are loose to test the human and environmental limitations of money.

The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) just marked five years of no-holds-barred commerce between the US, Canada, and Mexico. According Public Citizen's Global Trade Watch "do-no-harm" test, the pact has failed in every respect.

"NAFTA at 5: A Citizen's Report Card" (12/98) shows failing marks in nine categories ranging from US job creation to economic impact on Mexico. In just five years, "Free Trade" has become synonymous with pollution, poverty, crime, and corruption. Now free trade simply means unfettered foreign investment anywhere that guarantees substandard wages and absolutely no environmental regulations; a place where capital moves freely and labor is held hostage.

All these places, writes Charles Bowden, "...are growing quietly like mold on the skin of the planet."

Nowhere is the impact of free trade more evident than in border cities like Juárez, and nobody understands better NAFTA's impact on Juárez than Charles Bowden. In Juárez: The Laboratory of Our Future, with its 100 disturbing photographs of death and despair, Bowden transforms our first-world dream of the future into a third-world nightmare of reality.

"Politicians and economists speculate about a global economy fueled by free trade. Their speculations are not necessary. In Juárez the future is over thirty years old, and there are no questions about its nature that cannot be answered in this city."

In Juarez, with essays by Noam Chomsky and Eduardo Galeano, Bowden reports on the disparate relationship between El Paso and Juárez at ground zero, and its compounding effect on the larger alliance between Mexico and the US. It is a sad story that first surfaced in an acclaimed article written for Harper's magazine a couple of years ago. Here Bowden wends his words around the poignant and often brutal images of thirteen Juárez "street shooters," a group of unknown guerrilla photojournalists who work for little more than film and the satisfaction of exposing the city's deep malaise.

Charles Bowden's powerful narrative and wry first-person style, combined with these photographs of human and environmental devastation, create a tormenting text. The free-traders in Juárez (US-owned multinational corporations) make no qualms about exploiting human labor for a profit, and their NAFTA boosters are quick to point to America's surging economy to justify its sordid history. To paraphrase Bowden, They reluctantly admit to the object, but steadfastly deny any subject or verb.

Today there are more than 300 foreign-owned factories (maquiladoras) employing over 200,000 Mexican workers, mostly women, who work 6 days/48 hours for about $9 per day. (Ironically, under NAFTA, the new jobs created in Juárez are almost equal to the high-paying manufacturing jobs lost in America.)

Americans routinely justify these substandard wages with a belief that the cost of living is less in Mexico. In reality, prices in Juarez are 85-90% of those in El Paso, only 50 yards away, where your average Texan earns ten times more.

But jobs and wages at ground zero are just the tip of the iceberg in the maquiladora economy. NAFTA's other promised benefits of prosperity and environmental cleanup have failed miserably. The treaty instead has exacerbated social decay and public-health problems on both sides of the border.

In Juárez the petri dish bubbles over with a toxic brew of evil elements that has poisoned an entire city. People seethe with fear of violent gangs, narcotraffickers, smugglers, corrupt cops, and now even US soldiers along the border to help keep NAFTA's mess contained.

"In Juárez," Bowden writes, "you cannot sustain hope."

The veracity of Bowden's thesis is born out by Public Citizen's Global Trade Watch report. Juárez stands as a scathing indictment of American free-trade policy. ... Read more

Book Description

These are the images of War — they define the terror, the misery and the destruction that follows from this terrible endeavor. Can’t 21st century mankind find ways to live and work together, emphasizing our common humanity and peacefully resolving our disagreements? I believe we can. General Wesley Clark

In the tradition of Henri Cartier-Bresson and Robert Capa, these men and women and their photographs bring home the drama of war at a turning point in our history. Charlie Rose

WAR is a profoundly moving testament of the world at war since 9/11, as witnessed by some of our best and bravest journalists. Jon Lee Anderson

WAR reveals the true story of what our country has faced since that fateful Tuesday in 2001. Featuring 223 photographs, insightful vignettes, and three thought-provoking major essays, WAR is a powerful collaborative ef