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Worth a Thousand Words--Photography Books selected by Deborah Stevenson |
In light of the photographic creativity of this month's Big Picture, we've put together a list of books that demonstrate photography above and beyond the call of duty (and occasionally the call of beauty as well). Some of these are books about photography itself; some of these are books about other matters both fictional and non-fictional. All demonstrate the merits of the camera in capturing a world all the more intriguing for being real; it seems that with a good photographer, everything is photogenic.
Deborah Stevenson, Associate Editor
- Baumann, Kurt. The Hungry One; tr. and ad. by Naomi Lewis; illus. with photographs by Stasys Eidrigevicius. North-South, 1993. 6-9 yrs
The creepy omnivorous tale of The Hungry One finds startling interpretation in Eidrigevicius' moody photographs of phantasmagoric mask-paintings fronting human figures. (BCCB 4/93) [See also Ramachander's Little Pig] - Brandenburg, Jim. To the Top of the World: Adventures with Arctic Wolves; written and illus. with photographs by Jim Brandenburg. Walker, 1993. Gr. 4-7.
Up-close and personal views of lupine life bring the wild world right into readers' laps. (BCCB 11/93) [See also Brandenburg's Sand and Fog: Adventures in Southern Africa] - Cech, John. Jacques-Henri Lartigue: Boy with a Camera; illus. with photographs by Jacques-Henri Lartigue. Four Winds, 1994. Gr. 4-7.
Lartigue's career in photography started in 1902, when he was seven; young readers will be intrigued to see the youthful experiments of a noted photographer. (BCCB 1/95) - Cerullo, Mary M. The Octopus: Phantom of the Sea; illus. with photographs by Jeffrey L. Rotman. Cobblehill, 1997. Gr. 4-8.
Underwater photographs set the undulating against velvety dark backgrounds of the deep while revealing enticing squiddish secrets. (BCCB 2/97) - Freedman, Russell. Martha Graham: A Dancer's Life. Clarion, 1998. Gr. 6-12
This may seem a surprising choice for this list, but the dance photography by Barbara Morgan, Martha Swope and others makes Grahame's choreography into a starkly sculptural beauty. (BCCB 6/98) - Kuklin, Susan. From Head to Toe: How a Doll Is Made; written and illus. with photographs by Susan Kuklin. Hyperion, 1994. Gr. 2-4.
Kuklin takes clever advantage of the surreal photo-ops presented by the doll factory: rows of staring disembodied eyes, shelves of bald heads, and boxes of bare doll bottoms give a skewed edge to an already interesting topic. (BCCB 5/94) [See also Kuklin's Fireworks : the Science, the Art, and the Magic] - Lavies, Bianca. A Gathering of Garter Snakes; written and illus. with photographs by Bianca Lavies. Dutton, 1993. Gr. 3-5.
From the writhing mass of garter snakes at the bottom of a Manitoba pit to individual portraits of its denizens as they socialize with their human neighbors, Lavies' photographs of her serpentine subjects bring out all their sinuous elegance. (BCCB 2/94) - Ling, Mary. The Snake Book; by Mary Ling and Mary Atkinson; illus. with photographs by Frank Greenaway and Dave King. DK, 1997. Gr. 3-7.
There's just something about snakes and cameras, apparently; oversized double-spreads of snakes captured on film as they negotiate the boundaries of a clean white box excels in conveying their lithe reptilian allure. (BCCB 5/97) - Martin, James. Frogs; illus. with photographs by Art Wolfe. Crown, 1997. Gr. 4-6
Enhanced by an unusually sprightly text, this gallery of amphibia displays a stunning array of color, texture, and size; lustrous and verdant frogs seem ready to hop right off the page. (BCCB 3/98) - Wegman, William. Puppies; written and illus. with photographs by William Wegman. Hyperion, 1997. Gr. 5-10.
Wegman's chatty account of his love affair with Weimaraners and the photography thereof will appeal to both dog and camera fans. (BCCB 1/98) [See also Wegman's One, Two, Three] - Wexler, Jerome. Sundew Stranglers: Plants That Eat Insects; written and illus. with photographs by Jerome Wexler. Dutton, 1995. Gr. 2-4.
Wexler's always-capable photography delves into the alluring and sinister world of carnivorous plants. (BCCB 7/95) [See also Everyday Mysteries] - Wick, Walter. A Drop of Water: A Book of Science and Wonder; written and illus. by Walter Wick. Scholastic, 1997. Gr. 3-6.
Basic science experiments with water take on an unearthly beauty in Wick's images of iridescent bubbles, lacy frost, and globular drops. (BCCB 2/97) - Wolf, Sylvia. Focus: Five Women Photographers. Whitman, 1994. Gr. 5-9.
Showcasing both historic (Julia Cameron, Margaret Bourke-White) and contemporary photographers (Flor Gardu–o, Sandy Skoglund, Lorna Simpson), this book allows a look at a wide range of photographic visions. (BCCB 11/94) - Wood, Ted. Iditarod Dream: Dusty and His Sled Dogs Compete in Alaska's Jr. Iditarod; written and illus. with photographs by Ted Wood. Walker, 1996. Gr. 4-7.
Apparently there's something about canines as well; frosty images of dogs at work provide the highlight of this account of a teen training in the tundra. (BCCB 4/96)
This page was last updated on October 1, 1998.