ArtsNet.Net Selections: Books!

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....THE STARRY NIGHT.... Neil Waldman What a wonderful book! I have shared this book with many children. Their reaction is always the same: entranced by the stunning paintings of New York, curious about Vincent Van Gogh and eager to begin to draw and paint. I thinkthis book will help kids to discover their creative potential. (And big kids - to age 90 - love it too!) A reader from New York * For every book purchased another will be donated to the Children's Aid Society

.....CARELESS LOVE.... Peter Guralnick Peter Guralnick's two-volume life of Elvis Aron Presley, of which Careless Love: The Unmaking of Elvis Presley is the second installment, is not simply the finest rock-and-roll biography ever written. It must be ranked among the most ambitious and crucial biographical undertakings yet devoted to a major American figure of the second half of the 20th century. ........Gerald Marzorati ........ The New York Times

...SAYLES ON SAYLES... John Sayles, Gavin Smith Sayles on Sayles explains how a guy who sold his blood for money and only took creative-writing courses to keep his grade point high enough to avoid the Vietnam draft wound up winning an O. Henry Award, how his National Book Award for Union Dues fed his career as a writer for B-movie czar Roger Corman, and the bumpy road from Return of the Secaucus Seven to double Oscar nominations, masterpieces Matewan and Lone Star, and Apollo 13--which paid better than selling one's blood.

.. ART FOR DUMMIES.. Thomas Hoving What a privilege it is to stroll through thousands of years of magnificent art with the keen-eyed, confident, supremely knowledgeable Thomas Hoving, the former director of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, whose opinionated, charming prose could make anyone feel like an art-world insider.--Peggy Moorman

THE GUERRILLA GIRLS' BEDSIDE COMPANION TO THE HISTORY OF MODERN ART Guerrilla Girls The Guerrilla Girls demonstrate how males have dominated the art scene, and discouraged, belittled, or obscured the women's movement. This colorful reinterpretation of classic and modern art, as outrageous as it is visibly arresting, is a much-needed corrective to traditional art history, and an unabashed celebration of female artists.

A CUT ABOVE: 50 Film .Directors Talk About ......Their Craft..... Michael Singer, Oliver Stone Singer takes the reader on an inside look at the craft, the art, the passion, and vision of 50 great film directors. Candid, unrestrained conversations weave a personal, never-before-seen intimacy to each interview. The book also includes a chapter on the up-and-coming maverick film directors.

...SCREENWRITERS:.. America's Storytellers in ........Portrait............ Helena Lumme (Editor), Mika Manninen (Editor) Screenwriters offers unique visual and verbal portraits of each of the 47 writers covered. Considering the media attention lavished upon actors and actresses, it is refreshing and revealing to hear from the people who craft the words uttered onscreen.

.... .... BASQUIAT: .. .... .. A Quick Killing In Art.... Phoebe Hoban Newly published in paperback, Basquiat: A Quick Killing in Art traces the controversial artist's meteoric ascent from scribbler of graffiti on the walls of SoHo to shining star of the '80s art scene, where he glittered in the universe of Warhol, Madonna, Haring, and Schnabel. --excerpted from a review by Jordana Moskowitz

DANCE INK: .......PHOTOGRAPHS...... ..J. Abbott Miller, Patsy Tarr (Editor)s, Nancy Dalva, Duane Michals, Marcia Lippman (Photographers) ....... . ...a quick, hip overview of late 20th-century American modern dance. .........Jennifer Dunning......... The New York Times

.......DEEP BLUES..... Robert Palmer There's no other way to put it, this is simply the best book out there on the blues both as a music form and as force in shaping American culture. At once simple and concise, yet broad and in depth enough to tell a very complete story, this one work should satisfy everyone from the novice to the experienced blues fan. ...necessary reading for anyone seriously interested in the blues.

.LAST NIGHT'S FUN. Ciarian Carson Author Ciaran Carson applies his writer's insight to this unique examination of traditional Irish music. Carson, who is also a gifted musician, discusses the history of the music and shares the profound feelings he experiences while playing it. Using this rich form of music as a metaphor for life, the book becomes both a complex exploration of a traditional art form and the writer's fascinating life history.

ANDY GOLDSWORTHY Andrew Goldsworthy Scottish artist Andy Goldsworthy uses natural materials, from snow and ice to leaves, stone, and twigs in the creation of his one-of-a-kind sculptures. Goldsworthy's approach is to temporarily alter or work with nature to produce his fragile, mutable pieces. . .leaving no trace of the artwork's existence save for the stunning photos in this book.

.....,,.DEAR GENIUS:.....,...The Letters of Ursula ...Nordstrom............ Ursula Nordstrom, Leonard S. Marcus (Editor) In this fascinating behind-the-scenes look at children's book publishing, letters to Shel Silverstein, Maurice Sendak, Laura Ingalls Wilder, John Steptoe, and Kay Thompson reveal a woman on an unorthodox quest to wrench children's literature from the stultifying clutches of sentimental illusion and false piety. ......arguably the greatest editor of American children's books in this century. ......Rebecca Pepper Sinkler..,. The New York Times

THE ESSENTIAL JOSEPH .....,,,,,,.BEUYS .......... Alain Borer, Lothar Schirmer (Editor) The pages of this book contain a virtual exhibit of Beuys' most important work. Unfettered by the limitations of actual gallery space and the logistical problems of mounting such a comprehensive exhibition, the book is able to display drawings, sculptures, installations and photographs of the artist at work. His oeuvre, composed mostly of tactile materials like felt, honey, wax and fat, was groundbreaking at its time of inception (mid 20th century) and maintains a contemporary, cutting-edge feel even today. Beuys' work, with its strong political and philosophical themes and compelling visual allure, will continue to resonate through the art world for years to come. -- Jordana Moskowitz

.......HANK WILLIAMS..... ........The Biography...... Colin Escott, George Merritt (Contributor), William MacEwen (Contributor) The inside story of country music's greatest legend--the man who achieved national recognition for hits like ""Hey Good Lookin'"" and ""I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry."" This widely heralded biography gives readers the last word on this country music legend--the singer who first turned country into gold . . . and who died destitute of a drug overdose at the age of 29. "An impressive book. . . Probably the definitive word on Williams's life."--Boston Globe. Photos.

GARY GIDDENS VISIONS OF JAZZ: The First Century ...the finest unconventional history of jazz ever written--a brilliant, indispensable book... .............Alfred Appel Jr............. The New York Times Book Review .... a landmark destined to occupy a permanent niche on the shelf of essential jazz literature. The Los Angeles Times Sunday Book Review, Grover Sales He knows his subject, his prose is interesting and graceful, his judgments are measured and fair, and the only camp of which he is a member is his own. The Washington Post Book World, Jonathan Yardley

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