Art History Books

Dear Mr. Rehbein,

I am writing on behalf of my friend, Maria Mendonca, whom you met recently in East Providence, Rhode Island. Maria has leant me the book to read...These are her comments. Wonderful! When I picked up the book to ready, I just couldn't put it down. When I met you and your wife, I knew that you were both kind people. I enjoyed reading about your life. Just to survive was a miracle. The fact that you found both your mother and your father was fascinating. I hope many people read your book....there is so much to learn from it. The world would be a better place. Sincerely, Maria Mendonca

While reading this book can stir many different emotions in the reader, the one that I was left with was hope. Hope in the fact that more people can be as forgiving in their fellow human beings as Charles Rehbein was after all he was made to endure at the hand of mans own kind.

Believing that he was able to survive his hardships through his faith in God, Mr. Rehbein's personal story has meaning in it even for those whose faith may not be as strong.

I commend him for being able to share his memories and open feelings with all who are fortunate enough to read this very moving story of "one man's life as lived through World War II."

A book well written and well worth the read.

This informative memoir is set in Eastern Europe, a region historically noted for its interplay between Polish and German settlers. Beginning with the onset of World War II, this book describes the flights and imprisonments of teenage Charles Rehbein. Of particular interest is the characterization of German, Polish, Russian civilians and soldiers. Depictions are simple but insightful and make for an interesting read. Charles Rehbein is a gifted person, quite able to provide the reader with the terror, deprivation, discipline, and the hopes that were his.

It is a privilege of knowing Mr Rehbein for 45+ years not only as a man whom I worked for, but also as a teacher and friend. Mr Rehbein taught me to do my work, as humanly as possible, toward perfection.
His daughter and three sons have to be so proud of their Dad, especially knowing his childhood and teenage history. I envy them because I only wish I had known more about my Dad. His Faith, which sustained him during this tragic time, is a testament to a true believer. May God Bless Mr Rehbein and his Family. Charlie, I look forward to the continuation of your life in the next book.,,, Orson w. Black

This is an astonishing story of faith and survival. The story is well written with vivid descriptions of people, places and events. The author's clear recall of events amazed me and kept me reading with anticipation. This story will put your own life into perspective. The short and to the point chapters make for easy reading. Highly recommended.

And that thought never wavered once as I agonizingly slowly fiddled with the corners of each page to the next, completely awed and feeling like I wanted to go to New York and show off my skinky legs as well. This book is unreal.

There's flash everywhere. There's pizazz. There's an army of sequins, a rainbow of sparkles, a lifetime of gorgeous reds, beautiful greens, and dazzling blues that you would have never dreamed would have graced this earth in all of eternity. They all flash, they all sparkle, they all wink out and grab you by the eyeballs and force you to gawk and gawk at them until you feel like all your pupils have dried up and you can't possibly gawk anymore, but you just do.

The book is sort of divided into sections, but the reader (or watcher) won't pay too much attention to that except for the divisions for the Hollywood and Barbie section. You've got funky fonts that pop out at you from this unknown corner you never knew was there; you've got these curvaceous paragraphs shaped like a woman's body; and you've got so many other things that I couldn't possibly explain to you until you've bought the damn book. So buy it already.

My only complaint is that the "Hollywood", "Barbie", and his own fashion line sections are too brief. How can you possibly fit more than forty years of glory, fashion, and Bob Mackie into just over 150 pages?

It ain't nobody, but Mackie. Get it for yourself! You will never, *ever* regret that decision.

Wonderful book! Such gorgeous pictures and I loved the Bob Mackie story too. My only complaint is that it just wasn't long enough.....hoping for a sequel.

This survey of the fashion and fantasy of fashion designer Mackie examines his many contributions. Mackie created works for popular television as well as film and stage: Unmistakably Mackie considers his life, fashion designs and revealing outfits. Plenty of color photos of actresses in full outfit abound.

I bought Unmistakably Mackie after drooling over the book for nearly a year. It is beautiful, it is entertaining, it is over the top, it is history. It is also a fine education in costume design and fashion illustration.
I have other books that feature Mackie's unrivalled fashion illustrations, but here I can see and almost touch the finished costumes that made Cher and Carol and Ann-Margaret. I can finally analyze how they are made.
Please, don't wait to buy this wonderful book. and it is well worth getting a new, pristine copy of this treasure.

WOW! WOW! WOW! Unmistakably Mackie is a fabulous fashion book! This is by far my favorite book! The photography is stunning. The creative type layouts are imaginative. The sketches are wonderful. Anyone interested in costume &/or fashion design will LOVE this book writen by Frank DeCaro ("Style over Substance" columnist for the NY Times).

As a designer & illustrator just starting out, I find no end of inspiration in this book! The sketches are delightful and the outfits are always immaginative. (Looking at the photos & sketches, I found out I can draw Cher too!) :o)

Before reading this book on Bob Mackie, I had no idea the extent of his influence. I just knew I liked his designs. Now he is undoubtedly my favorite designer. (I want to do what he does!) This man has done everything...from his own ready-to-wear fashion line to Broadway, television (Cher and Carol Burnett), movies, ballet, an opera, Vegas and Barbie! If there's something he hasn't designed for, I'd be surprised.

I heartily recommend this book!

It's entertaining and educational. I really enjoyed. Great gift idea.

This lovely book, a perfect blend of art and cuisine, will satisfy any reader, from the most casual van Gogh fan to the most discriminating foodie and/or art historical specialist. As the subtitle indicates ("Recipes from the Artist's Last Home and Paintings of Café Life"), it's is partly a cookbook, featuring recipes from the Auberge Ravoux, a 19th century inn in the town of Auvers-sur-Oise where van Gogh lived the last seventy days of his life, and where he died.

But don't be misled. This is not just another pretty coffee-table book with yet more pretty color reproductions of "The Café Terrace on the Place du Forum," etc. This is a work of substantive scholarship, but presented in such a way as to be accessible and enjoyable to anyone. The second half of the book, including the recipes, is authored by culinary historian Alexandra Leaf (in cooperation with chef Christophe Bony), who contexualizes the recipes in a larger discussion about van Gogh's time in Auvers and culinary customs of the time. The first half is authored by art historian Fred Leeman, former chief curator of the van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. His essay, "A Private Life in Public Places," discusses van Gogh's biography, but primarily from the view of his time spent in restaurants and cafés, so it's not the usual story that's been recounted so many times. In addition to discussing more well-known van Gogh paintings like "The Café Terrace on the Place du Forum" or "The Night Café," Leeman also includes lesser-known paintings and drawings that specialists will be happy to see and non-specialists will enjoy learning about. His analyses of the works are clear and persuasive, sometimes offering alternative datings and interpretations. Julia Galosy, who worked with Dominique-Charles Janssens, the current owner of the Auberge Ravoux, in restoring the inn, also contributes a wonderful essay on that specific café and its history. All the authors rightfully avoid the tabloid sensationalism that unfortunately pervades many published treatments of the artist (including those written by evident non-specialists in a lame attempt to make a quick buck).

Handsome illustrations of nearly every van Gogh work mentioned (including some that are rarely illustrated), archival photographs, and lovely photographs of the contemporary incarnation of the Auberge Ravoux and its cuisine, add to the stand-alone value of this book. For those who are interested, there are endnotes in the back of the book, leading readers to specific citations in van Gogh's letters and elsewhere, and a brief but comprehensive bibliography.

On a side note: I purchased and read this book a few months ago in preparation for a visit to Auvers-sur-Oise. My plans included a luncheon at the Auberge Ravoux and a pilgrimage to Vincent's lonely attic room. Reading this book, including Mr. Janssens' forward, was the perfect preparation for my visit. Sitting in the cozy atmosphere of the Auberge and enjoying a three-course luncheon (including the Marinated Herring and Salmon from p. 110, a plat du jour of chicken fricassee [not in the book], and the positively sublime Chocolate Mousse Saboyan from p. 130) was a wonderful experience that I will always treasure. A different experience, more spiritual and moving in character and even more memorable, was the actual visit to Vincent's room upstairs. Mr. Janssens and his associates are to be commended for their dedication to Vincent's memory through their work at the Auberge Ravoux, and the authors and publisher of this book are to be commended for diffusing that work in book form.

While at the Auberge Ravoux, I purchased at the gift shop one of the "torchons" (table linens) embroidered with the name of the auberge (pictured on p. 109). Both it and this book share a place of honor in the van Gogh section of my personal library.

Bon appetit!

The Grandmother's Apple Cake recipe in this book is my favorite recipe on Epicurious so I bought the book hoping the other recipes would be as good. Wow! It was so beautiful and interesting and so much more than a cookbook that I gave it to a good friend as a Christmas gift and ordered another.

This is really half art book, half cookbook. The book is co-written by an art historian (mostly the first part, which recounts Van Gogh's last days, spent in the hotel, when he churned out 70 paintings in 70 days) and Alexandra Leaf, a food historian, who together with the chef at the hotel (which exists to this day) includes recipes for dishes Van Gogh ate. They're fantastic. Highly recommended.

I have enjoyed reading the historical and personalized view of Van Gogh's stay at the Auberge Ravoux. The recipes appear to be ones that can be enjoyed. My husband surprised me with the chocolate mousse the other night and it was the best I have ever eaten.
Compliments to Alexandra Leaf!

In Vincent Van Gogh's brief 37 years, he resided in at least 38 locations spread among four different countries. The Auberge Ravoux inn in northern France was to be the last of Van Gogh's residences, for it is where the artist died in 1890. The author purchased the Auberge Ravoux Inn and renovated it with the help of dedicated craftspersons and turned it into a memorial to the artist

Van Gogh's Table is a collaborative effort that combines an art book with recipes designed to evoke the flavors of Van Gogh's time, along with cultural and culinary history augmented by Van Gogh's illustrations and paintings. Fifty recipes for bistro classics such as Rosemary Roast Chicken with Pan-Fried Potatoes, and Garlic and Warm Tarte Tatin with Crème Fraiche,

A recipe for beef bourguignonne begins with; "In our time-pressed age, such a dish requires that we step back for a moment and remember that some things in life are worth waiting for -- especially stews."

Vincent van Gogh spent much of his life in cafes, hotels, and small inns. These establishments often became the subjects of his paintings, Van Gogh's Table is a unique presentation of culinary history, Van Gogh's artwork, and recipes that transport readers to the Auberge Ravoux in the year of 1890.

As a professional artist and dedicated cook, I found this a uniquely enjoyable book.

It ranks side by side with the other book The art of Florence. Ihave these books and I have lot's of books about Venice. But on the subject of art and architecture. This is the most comprehensive to date.
It's more like a general book. It lacks though some focus on La Serenissima's various museums and other works of Art . But of any books out there to date this is certainly the most exhaustive of all. Bravi!

I borrowed these books from a friend. I could not believe my eyes. They are most fantastic! I have ordered a set for myself. I recommend them highly!

The book consists of two books in a slipcase, and given its unusually large format and high quality paper, it weighs a ton. The weight is however well substantiated by the contents! The progression is chronological, right from the beginnings of Venice in Volume I, to modern items at the end of Volume II. The architecture side of things is covered by hundreds of top quality photographs of buildings inside and outside, as well as drawings, old photographs, and building plans. As for the art, there are countless clear representations of the masterpieces of the city. Having been in the city a few times, this book adds so much value, firstly by showing me reminders of the places and objects I have seen, and secondly by exposing the interiors of buildings usually closed to the casual visitor.

The reason why I rated this four stars instead of five, is because the book does not give as much coverage to Venice's art museums as I feel it should. Sure, the contents of the art museums were in large part not manufactured by Venetian artists, but all this art now forms part of Venice on account of having been in its museums for decades. Understandably, however, that would probably require another two volumes! Another area that was perhaps not covered sufficiently is that of glass. After all, Venetian glass is world famous, and it deserved more than a short chapter.

Overall however, this is the sort of book one would expect to find in the reference section of a top class library, and yet the price makes it affordable for your own home. It is also very much a scholarly work, filled with details in the text section. It is thus perfect for both those who want to look at the stunning pictures, and those who want to really get into the story behind it all. You will not be disappointed, and I recommend this work without reservation.

I concur with others who reviewed this book and give it top billing! The photos are exquisitely clear and are a good representation of what the city offers. The text is quite complete, although I, too, would have liked to have seen more on Venetian glass. Another fabulous collection for those who love the jewel of a city or for any lover of fine art and architecture.

a very wonderful book for people who love art and architecture especially for a wonderful and enchanting city such as venice. Through this book one is able to be transported in time and view its art and architecture one that cannot do in even the most dedicated of travelers to this fascinating city.

Vermeer's Hat is a wonderfully creative book that delves into the broader picture of global trade in the seventeenth century through Johannes Vermeer's paintings. I had some introduction to Vermeer in art appreciation classes, but Brook effectively uses the objects seen in some of his well known paintings to enlighten us about the goings and comings in a world being transformed by trade. Even the effects of climate change figure into his painting of the city of Delft, as revealed by the fishing vessels seen. From the Turkish rugs, Chinese porcelain, and silver seen in some of Vermeer's work, we begin to see the evidence of the effects of global trade with other countries, most notably China, as the author gives great attention to.

Brook uses the city of Delft, Vermeer's residence, as a starting point for understanding global trade at that time. Through the paintings of that art master we see the signs of a world that stretched far beyond Vermeer's native soil. We learn of The Dutch East India Company's role in the local economy and the transporting of thousands of Holland's citizens to far off lands in their efforts to make a better living for themselves and to bring back goods that were in demand in their native land.

The stories of shipwreck survivors and victims, Jesuit missionaries in China, the tobacco craze, silver currency extracted from South America bound for China and or Europe, Chinese culture and customs and their own outlook on the rest of the world, all come into focus in this book. Some of the stories are horrific and brutal. The competition between European powers for the Asian market also figures into this story.

Brook is to be commended for offering a fairly unique way of looking at the bigger picture (no pun intended) through the window of Johannes Vermeer's paintings.

Much more of a book on the economics and cultural impacts of global commercial trade as it developed in the 17th century, than one on the great artist Vermeer.

It contains highly interesting and instructive stories focused on items common to the Dutch experience of Vermeer's day, such as tobacco, silver, and beaver pelts (for hats). Current day trade protectionists should read this intelligent effort by the scholar, Timothy Brook, and reflect.

Timothy Brook examines some of Vermeer's most well known paintings and discovers the complicated world of the seventeenth century can be reached and revived through them. I have admired Vermeer's paintings for many years, but I never realized how much they reflect the world at the time. Even the simplest objects which to the untrained eye look just randomly placed to frame the main subject of a painting turn out to have a deep meaning. A beaver hat and a porcelain bowl remind us of the world wide trade network, the confident smile on a pretty girl's face demonstrates the rise in European women's status, a map on a wall indicates new political and military power, and so on. This is an excellent work of history, and a reminder of why historians should take even the unlikeliest of objects into account.

Every once in a while, a book comes along that really surprises me with its excellence - Vermeer's Hat is one of those books. What this book is is a look into the seventeenth century, but as a hook, the book uses eight seventeenth century works of art, that each tells us something about the era in which it was created. And, what makes the book so very interesting is that it covers events and phenomenon that are rarely discussed in other books, such the movement of goods between Europe, Spanish America and China, the spread of tobacco, and so much more.

Overall, I found this book to be very entertaining and very interesting - it kept me up reading when I should have been asleep! If you are interested in the seventeenth century, then you will find this to be a very good resource. Heck, even if you are just interested in history, you will find this to be an excellent read, one that will well reward the time you spent reading it. I give this book my highest recommendations!

A fascinating, erudite but easy-to-read series of chapters on trade, exploration, cross-cultural influence and physical culture, using 17th century Delft as the starting point. but reaching around the globe to Asia and the Americas. I'm a huge Vermeer fan and I visited Delft last April, so the book had an added resonance to me. Although you don't need to be an art lover to appreciate the book, a familiarity with Vermeer makes the argument event more interesting. I visited the Frick Collection yesterday and saw the image on the cover for the 20th time and noticed things I'd never realized before. The book brings to mind Jonathan Spence's "The Memory Palace of Matteo Ricci" and the Simon Schama's "The Embarassment of Riches," (both authors blurbed this book) although it's probably an easier read than either. If you like books like those and "Longitude," you'll love this. Not so much an art history book -- and not a replacement for the other books on Vermeer as an artist -- but a cultural historian's look at an important era in the opening up of the world.

This is an absolutely incredible book that looks at what Vietnam really was through the eyes of others. I especially enjoyed John Plunkett's artwork, which is excellent. Highly recommened.

Would you believe I got this book for just over a dollar brand new?

Well at that price I decided to take a chance on purchasing it and I am glad I did.

What an amazing book is all I can say.

Nearly very page is filled with stunning, shocking, haunting, humorous, reflective and horrific artwork, created by Vietnam Vets over the years and you are treated to a Table Top book with a difference.

In a nut shell this book, along with its down to earth narratives bites at your soul.

This is no Gung Ho patriotic war book about the glories of war; this book turns war on its head through sculpture, painting, photographs, poetry and pure raw self expression, Vietnam vets, both men and women able to tell their story, as they experienced it.

Nothing prepared me for what I was going to behold, not only visually but through the written word too.

This is one hell of a book that leaves you with a bitter sweet taste in your mouth that you will never, ever forget.

This book is an extremely moving overview of the experiences of our nation's young men and women, who traveled half way around the world to fight in America's longest and most unpopular war.

For those interested in the NVVAM's artifact collection, check out Weapons and Field Gear of the NVA and VC and the forthcoming Viet Cong due to be released in January 1999.

These works of art tell so many strong and painful stories, I will never forget these images of a time (that I hope) will never be repeated.

Vietnam - the war we would all rather forget and bury, so painful are the memories and wounds it engendered on America and on Asia - is at last viewed from the standpoint of artists who lived it. This visually magnificent collection of works of art made by Vietnam Veterans, both while they were in Vietnam and in the tortured years subsequent to their return as "non-heroes", not only introduces for the first time another form of documentation about the Vietnam Experience. It provides a touchstone as powerful as the Vietnam War Memorial Wall in Washington DC where surviving veterans and the families and loved ones of veterans can begin to understand what happened there. VIETNAM: REFLEXES AND REFLECTIONS is at once a catalogue of the artists (some 95 men/women, US/Vietnamese ) represented in the National Vietnam Veterans Art Museum in Chicago, IL; with the tender forward by Director Sondra Varco and insightful essays on art and war through history and art in the Vietnam setting, this book becomes the standard for scholarly studies about a particularly painful time and the body of art it produced. This book should be required reading for all Americans: the art contained in it touches us all.

This is a unique and delightful book. Unlike so many publications about the early space program, which typically rehash many of the same old stories, this one actually reveals something fresh and heretofore unexamined. Dr. Rahman avoids overuse of technologic talk, keeping the book very accessible for the casual reader; yet manages to unearth something genuinely different for those of us who avidly read all things space.

For those who care naught about exploration of the moon, readers will still find a wonderful message of peace on earth. In fact, the mounbound messages (nearly four decades old now) contained herein, penned by leaders from around the world, seem remarkably timely for our age and any age. It is touching to read such sentiments from world leaders who have often been considered enemies rather than friends.

Ultimately, this is not a book about a super-power's technologic feats in space; but about a planet uniting for a single moment in its history and longing to return to that unity.

I was just 7 when men first set foot on the moon and I can still remember the excitement as my parents explained what was going on and tried to impart to me the significance of what I was witnessing on our old black and white TV. Until I read this book I had no idea that over 70 nations sent unique messages of goodwill to be left on the moon forever. Tahir has done a wonderful job in collecting these messages together, as well as giving us many rare and beautiful photographs which pictorially document that time almost 40 years ago. I can heartily recommend this book for anyone with an interest in the space programme. However, it is far more than merely another book about Apollo, Neil Armstrong etc; it gives us a rare insight into how other nations apart from America perceived the significance of this monumental effort and event. In the turbulent times of the late 1960s, it is heart-warming to learn that so many countries which might, in many ways, be at odds with one another, genuinely wished the best for the men who landed on the moon and wanted to feel a part of the whole enterprise. That is the true message of this book and is perhaps a lesson that nations might learn from today.

I enjoyed this book as, instead of being too narrowly focused (as a story about one little object might sound at first), it tells the story of this tiny disc as just one symbolic element of the first mission to the lunar surface. Not just for the committed space-geek, this book does a good job of conveying some of the wonder of the first lunar landing mission, both in words and in beautiful full-page images. As a snapshot of the world of 1969, it is fascinating.

The disc, intended as a symbolic gesture, turns out to tell many more stories than its original intention, and in many ways summarize the whole venture. As the book describes the rush to add last-minute messages to the disc, hurriedly collecting messages from world leaders, so we come to understand the tensions between science, engineering, PR and politics that were taking place in the busy runup to launch. Some arguments, such as whether to include religious wording to symbolic statements, sound very familiar to some current political debates.

The political reasonings behind some of the messages, and also why some nations declined involvement, give an interesting insight into late-1960s global politics. It's very interesting to read all of the messages themselves as a reflection of the times. Some of the blandest statements come from the major powers on the world stage, with smaller countries such as Liberia, Guyana, the Ivory Coast, Trinidad and Tobago providing some of the most thought-provoking words as they decide how to claim their own little intellectual corner of the mission. The messages come from countries which in many cases no longer exist or have been renamed, from leaders long gone, long deposed and in many cases long discredited. Very few, such as Queen Elizabeth, are still around.

Without any commentary, the end of the book is nevertheless perhaps the most powerful part. Giving a brief biography of each of the leaders whose words appear on the disc, in many cases we are treated to a rogue's gallery of dictators, coup winners, corrupt tyrants and those who went on to murky and inglorious ends. A good portion of the leaders are people who, today, we may view as the last names we'd want representing humankind in a message to the future. While aiming for a high purpose, the disc therefore also inadvertently summarizes what a messy and imperfect world we lived in in 1969. Perhaps, in doing so, it gives extra luster to the Apollo 11 mission itself, which managed to reach above its Cold War origins and achieve something for all humankind.

A very interesting work, presented in beautiful form.

Given an accomplishment as large as landing the first men on the Moon, it is easy to understand why the smaller details of the Apollo 11 mission might be forgotten to the passage of time. It is therefore a delight to see author Tahir Rahman return the spotlight (and microscope) to the flight's goodwill silicon disc. What some may have seen as a trinket, Rahman saw as the treasure it really it is. "We Came In Peace For All Mankind" will fit as well in a space historian's library as it will the space enthusiast's.

The story of the least-remembered memento Neil Armstrong & Buzz Aldrin left on the Moon in 1969.

Almost forty years ago we were glued to our tvs watching NASA's greatest show yet: humans encased in silver space suits cavorting on the Moon, our one & only orbital companion which has inspired us to lunacy & romance & poetry for countless generations. No, Virginia, there is no Man in the Moon, only astronauts upon it.

Above all other images we remember the one of Earthrise as our big blue marble hove into view beyond the curve of Moon's horizon. Then there was the planting of a floppy Stars & Stripes & the reading of the plaque below. What none of us remember, & the astronauts themselves almost forgot to do, was the placing of a cloth pouch in which reposed elegant powder compact-like cases of various materials which protected a silicon disc the size of a half-dollar, etched with goodwill messages from nation states around our world.

When I opened Tahir Rahman's beautiful coffee-table tome called WE CAME IN PEACE FOR ALL MANKIND: The Untold Story of the Apollo 11 Silicon Disc, I was hooked from page one, & not only by the multitude of glorious color photos.

The silicon disc was intended to tell who/whatever opens it upon landing on the Moon how diverse the inhabitants of the planet they see on the horizon are, & hopefully dissuade the reader/s from violent invasion. What we left was an engraved invitation to come visit, & WE CAME IN PEACE FOR ALL MANKIND is your invitation, too.

In the beginning there are awe-inspiring photos of Earthrise, a footprint & the silicon disc coupled with quips & quotes from Moonwalkers & prime ministers, & then Tahir Rahman's story starts: "Neil Armstrong peered through one of the small windows of the lunar module, Eagle..." He was preparing to step outside his safety zone into the unknown. Six-hundred-million people watched him, & "we laughed & cried & lit up cigars." It was a different time, folks, B4PC = personal computers & political correctness both! "Our world was united in a unique way while the astronauts walked on a surreal world for the first time in {our] history."

I enjoyed learning of the planning committee's conclusions, especially #2: "The activities should be in good taste from a world perspective." Naturally, like Columbus did, we thought to plant a flag, & a whole host of them was packed on board to be brought back as souvenirs for important supporters. Then someone thought up the commemorative plaque & we see its genesis.

Soon we're briefly meeting the Apollo 11 Crew, reading about how slivers of wood from the Orville brother's Kitty Hawk would be in the baggage. Some attention is devoted to how it was decided to use a US flag instead of another one, & how to make & hang such a flag in Moon's gravity-deficient atmosphere, as well as other Moonly scientific considerations.

& then we get to NASA's invitation to world leaders to add their 2 cents, & while we wait for them to reply, we learn who made the silicon disc & how. It becomes quite evident that Sprague Electric Company had a nightmare of a deadline. Then we're on to launch preparations, & soon they're off to the Moon.

The Library of Goodwill Messages makes up most of the rest of this volume: who & how the leaders of the world responded. I like that there's a map to each nation's reply so we can learn where on Earth they are/were. Plus a whole slew of Americans who backed the endeavor. It all sounds so dry, until you read it & realize how much was etched in gold into that little disc.

Tahir Rahman, a physician fascinated by the Apollo Program, was given a duplicate of the silicon disc by Neil Armstrong. What he found, upon magnification, on that little piece of plastic (sic!) so astonished him that he just had to investigate further, rousing NASA historians to dust off their memories & unearthing storage boxes in the warrens of the Library of Congress that had gathered decades of dust.

WE CAME IN PEACE FOR ALL MANKIND is a superb addition to your library. To be oohed & aahed over by all the generations of your family. Very well done!

I haven't finished reading this book, but it's a real treasure. The pictures even brought me to tears at a couple of points -- yes, I'm a sap. Truly, though, the clothing just seems to resonate with lives long past. They were painstakingly made by hand and worn by men, women and children of varying walks of life, not just the wealthy, although their clothing survived most often, of course. The clothes have stories to tell that in most cases the people who wore them never put to pen and paper.
The book is exactly what the title says -- a look at how surviving articles of clothing (including shoes, hose, etc.) reveal the circumstances and stages of a person's life in colonial and federal America, not to mention the wider forces at play around them.

I can definitely recommend What Clothes Reveal for history buffs and writers -- not sure about costume designers, but perhaps that's covered in another review.

I am a historical seamstress that uses this book to copy the shape and style of Rev.War garments. I really love this book and go back to it over and over. It is a very useful book in my reference library.

After spending a whole day at a Living History event, trying to justify spending that sort of money on a book. Which at the time was sealed and the vendor would not allow it to be opened. I finally bit the bullet and made the purchase. It is one of my all time favorite clothing books. The images are stunning, both full shots of pieces and close-ups. There are accessories, undergarments, et cetera. It includes a range of styles in the 18th century for men and women. Some children's garments. It is not all just aristocratic or high fashion, though it isn't lacking it either. But, the uberness of this book does not stop there. After I stopped devouring the pictures like a kid in a candy shop I started reading. I was impressed with the practical approach to fashion history that the author took. Instead of focusing on the outrageous and bizarre fads of fashion. The book also touches on how historians have identified, classified and labeled garments. And how they have been right or wrong in their theories, going on to explain the current position of opinion today with scholars in the field. The text flows with interesting facts and a keen wit and humor. There are quite a few amusing side bars, and a lot of "myth busters". I think this would be a welcome addition to any collection.

"What Clothes Reveal" is first and foremost a history of American and British wearing apparel from the 18th and early 19th centuries found in the Colonial Williamsburg collection. It is also a social history of the period illustrated by garments and accessories that allows the reader to delve beneath the outer surface silhouette seen in paintings, prints, and on museum mannequins to reveal garment construction, fit, underpinnings, alterations, and simple thrift. While many costume histories focus on a single gender and social class, "What Clothes Reveal" includes examples for men, women, and children--not only gentry but also common folk. While author Baumgarten's "Eighteenth Century Clothing at Williamsburg" was intended to be a catalog of the collection, "What Clothes Reveal" goes several steps further. Baumgarten explores the deeper meaning of individual items and their construction, offers an curatorial interpretation of the garments and objects, and places them in a historical context by identifying details about the original owner where possible. While not intended to be the minute examination of garments in her "Costume Close-up: Clothing Construction and Pattern, 1750-1790," it is an important companion. While the general photos are typical, the detail photos are rare in costume histories. Readers shouldn't ignore the sidebars, the timeline, or the footnotes. The extensive bibliography offers a superb list of additional titles to assist with further research. This book is a must for costume historians, curators, collectors, re-enactors, and others who seek to understand 18th and early 19th century garments and the lives and times of those who wore them. Baumgarten unbuttons many mysteries in a thoroughly readable style, leaving the reader anxious for her next contribution to the field of costume history.

This remarkable reference book consists of six chapters and a conclusion segment. So much information is included in this work that one can review it on many levels. My interest in this book is 18th century embroidery. The work of an 18th century surface embroiderer is foretold in this book and is portrayed in many venues. Embellished textiles such as stomachers, heavily embroidered pudding caps, women's cord quilted waistoats, swaddling bands for the new infant, and a yellow silk infant gown with a matching embroidered satin cap. Also, stunning embelishments on items such as spangled men's waistcoats, still unmade but outlined, on a large piece of silk are displayed with magnified detail allowing stitch colors, patterns, and directions to be studied. Included in What Clothes Reveal are beautiful examples of embroidered aprons for both the gentile ladies and the common women, different styles of pockets, covered and embroidered buttons, men's embroidered bargello wallets, and impressive men's caps. Baumgarten also included beautiful examples of ladies' fans, a wedding gown, and full maternity and nursing gown details including stays.

I ordered this book upon its release and studied it relentlessly. Afterwards I went to Colonial Williamsburg and experienced first hand this entire collection. With knowing and understanding the inside workings of this display, I was able to totally appreciate and understand the items in front of me.

I am very pleased with the book of watercolors. There were numerous pictures of high quality, and covered different phases of his life.

Since seeing a show of Winslow Homer's works a few years ago, I have been in awe of this artist's talent and versatility. So it was natural for me to pick up this beautiful and informative book which focuses on his watercolor career. In addition, the author gives us Homer's earlier background as an oil painter and illustrator. She is certainly well-qualified to write about Homer---she holds the position of Curator of American Paintings and Sculpture at the Yale University Art Gallery.

The color plates in this book are gorgeous and the text gives good information about Homer, his life, times, and techniques. It was a delight for my eyes!

In 1873, at the age of 37, Homer began serious work with watercolor while in Gloucester, Massachusetts. These paintings were characterized by broad brushstrokes and extensive use of light and color.

The Gloucester watercolors began Homer's lifelong pattern: he would focus for a certain amount of time on a singular theme inspired by a particular location. Some of these themes included rural life, especially childhood, and seascapes/marine scenes. He lived for periods of time in Gloucester; Cullercoats, England; Prout's Neck, Maine; the Bahamas and Cuba;, the Adirondacks; Quebec; Bermuda; and Florida. His need for privacy led him to live in somewhat remote locations, and during these years he was constantly experimenting with new techniques. Prout's Neck was his home base for his last 30 years although he often spent time in other places during that period. It was in Cullercoats (1881-82) that he developed his mature watercolor technique and his love of sea themes which he painted for the rest of his life.

Homer's late works are very thought provoking, often showing heroic subjects or themes; they show nature's beauty and its power and humans' mortality.

Homer lived a very solitary life, never truly realizing how really famous he was. He died at the age of 75, his last five years spent even more withdrawn from society and battling many illnesses.

One of my heroes, Winslow Homer (1836 - 1910) worked in watercolour throughout his career. As a watercolorist myself, I rate Homer as one of the best in the history of watercolor painting.

I purchased this book for its good illustrations of Homer's watercolour paintings, but soon found that the excellent text makes compelling reading too, dealing with formal and art-historical painting issues. It is an academic publication, with an emphasis on Homer's technique as it relates to his subject and meaning. Buy it just to drool over the paintings; the text is an added bonus.

The author has grouped Homer's watercolor work into geographical sections - for example, "Bahamas", "Adirondacks", "Florida and Prout's Neck". More than just a chronological journey, the book examines Homer's work from his many different physical locations. Homer's technically brilliant watercolours reflect his unique artistic vision, celebrated in vivid color, unique viewpoints, superb composition ... and more.

Received as a gift and have loved to peruse it ever since. Everyone should have these paintings to relax them and these words that stimulate.

This book provides a great analysis of Winslow Homer's growth as an artist. The author uses each chapter to analyze a different period of Homer's life as he, basically, self-taught himself through observation and experimentation based on where he lived, whether it was in the Bahamas, England, or the Northeast Atlantic coast of the United States. The pictures within the book are very good quality. The author emphasizes analysis of Homer's work over actual biographical information. If you are looking for more of a biographical-type book of Homer read Lloyd Goodrich's book Winslow Homer. Enjoy!

I was fortunate enough to have grown up in the 1970's and I've been able to recall nearly every project mentioned in this book, from the movies to the TV series and "movies of the week." To get a look behind the projects and see how they played a part in the history of women in Hollywood gave them a whole new meaning all these years later.

Told in an open, casual style (the book literally feels like conversations with everyone involved), WOMEN WHO RUN THE SHOW is fun look back at Hollywood as well as an important document of how the ladies "stormed" the gates of tinsel town.

This should be essential reading for every woman with an interest in show business--or anyone curious about the way Hollywood works.

I wonder if Mollie Gregory knew what she was going to reveal when she first started research for this book. It's an amazing book -- the journey taken by a group of courageous, talented women who didn't realize they were actually making history.

Absolutely terrific!

Mollie Gregory's newest book is a terrific history of recent Hollywood, as well as a biography of many courageous women. It is also much, much more. It is a great read, written with the ease of a novelist and the detailed facts of a top journalist. It contains many cautionary tales about the 'biz' plus it is a great how-to manual for anyone who wants a career in the entertainment field. If you were part of Hollywood in the 70s, 80s, or 90s, as I was, the stories will resonate, validate and entertain. If you're new in town --or want to be -- this book should be required reading. You will find it a fascinating peak at the real Hollywood. Enjoy!

A great history of show business and of the women who broke down the barricades. It reads like a novel. It's a must for anyone interested in Hollywood or the women's movement.

"When I started reading this book, I was amazed how controversial it was. I had no idea what women went through on the job in the 1970s through the 1990s, the period this book covers! I sent a copy to my mom in Chicago. She is 84 and has been in business all her life. She just called and told me that she has two of her friends over every afternoon, they pass the book around and read sections of it aloud, and laugh their heads off. She says that this book should be given to every retired woman because the women in this book are talking about what my mom and a million other senior women went through, too. What a great Christmas gift this book will be! (To the book editors of the Chicago Tribune, New York Times and L A Times--Wake up!)
Dave Henson, Chairman, International Foundation of Education and Performing Arts.