Ware Books

Joyce Ware's book offers a superior way to educate yourself on fine rugs in a short time, and it's well written, to boot. Highly recommended by this lover of rugs.

The International Book of Days is a companion volume to the fourth edition of "The American Book of Days". For each of the 366 days in the year (including February 29th), The International Book of Days remarks on extraordinary and pivotal events in world history, as well as international holidays and observances, from the debut of Beethoven's first symphony to Evacuation Day commemorated in Egypt (celebrating the withdrawal of British colonial forces) to Respect for the Aged Day in Japan. A unique and useful reference, especially recommended for public, school, and private library collections, enhanced with appendices and a straightforward index.

The translation of Chris Ware's biggest hit is good. I have the original book and noticed some color variations. Subtle differences with the tone of several pages. I'm mexican and only when I read this spanish version could discover a lot of things that I never noticed.

So I recommend this edition.

Just Kids is a must read, it tells many stories of teens from different backgrounds and cultures, trying to just be kids. Every kid could no doubt benefit from reading this very well written book. "Just Kids" is a slice of life for kids everywhere to read and enjoy.

This book is the best book on this style of Japanese pottery. It gives a detailed history of the region and style of karatsu ware. Has black and white plus many color photos. Is very informative. If you have a interest in this area this is the book for you.

I'm a Presbyterian who consults this volume at the beginning of every Lent. Bishop Kallistos' extensive introductory material on the history, practice, and meaning of the Lenten fast and Lenten observances is inspirational.

This is a great book on seven significant women of the 20th Century.
The author has become thoroughly familiar with each of her subjects, and in writing on her subjects, beautifully blends details of her subjects' lives, with thoughtful insights on her subjects' impact on their world, in a very readable fashion.
I picked up the book from the library for its chapter on Marian Anderson. On Ms. Anderson, the author writes that "when an elegant, beautiful black woman like Marian Anderson became a success, and did so with dignity and class, this message undermined the basis for racism in the first place, by revealing a black woman who in every way but her skin color matched the most successful whites." I then continued on to read the portrayals of the other seven women.
Even if you've read multiple biographies on the women portrayed in this book -- Eleanor Roosevelt, Dorothy Thompson, Margaret Mead, Katharine Hepburn, Babe Didrikson Zaharias, and Martha Graham -- you will pick up something new and interesting in the chapters of this book. If some of these women are new to you, you will get to know them as new and interesting friends. I did lean more toward the chapters on the women I was more familiar with -- Eleanor Roosevelt, Margaret Mead, Katharine Hepburn, and Marian Anderson.

Whether you are a parent or not this is a great book, that shows you how an everyday ordinary person can still achieve great things after facing some of the toughest challenges possible. it shows the strength of the human spirit! It brought me to tears, and at the same time made me feel great!!!
B. Howard, Merrillville, In.

I have great news for all of you hoping to find this product for the last few years: it is available right now from the main website for This American Life!

You're welcome.

[This review pertains to the larger hardcover edition. An edition widely available, but as of yet unlisted on Amazon]

There are many many Man Ray collections available now and choosing the best collection is fairly difficult unless you can preview each of them. I've seen many, but this is the first collection I felt compelled to purchase for a number of reasons.

First, the quality of the reproductions are uniformly excellent. The book is a nice size for this sort of thing. The photographs are large and the images are detailed. Taschen always does a great job with this sort of thing.

Second, the selections present a nice spectrum of Ray's work. It begins with a generous selection of his figure studies before moving on to some fashion work, a few of his famous "Rayographs", and some portraits. If you have a particular area of interest, you may prefer a more specific collection. For instance, if you are interested in his portraits of surrealists and dadaists, there are collections of those. Similarly, if you're a fan of his figure studies, there are plenty of books that cover those images exclusively. What this Taschen edition does the best is represent all of his styles in one easily accessibly volume.

Finally, the text is engaging and informative. Trilingual essays begin each section by framing the work historically as well as aesthetically. Anytime you read a trilingual book, it's always a gamble on readability. Fortunately for all you fellow English speakers, English is the largest and most prominent on the page.

There is also a chronology thrown in for good measure. Little features such as this really set this collection apart from the others. The combination of beautiful, large reproductions, informative text, and a comprehensive collection of images make this a great choice for anyone interested in Man Ray or surrealist art in general.