Andy Goldsworthy: A Collaboration with Nature

Amazon.com

Scottish artist Andy Goldsworthy uses a seemingly infinite array of purely natural materials, from snow and ice to leaves, stone, and twigs in the creation of his one-of-a-kind sculptures. Unlike such artists as Christo and Michael Hiezer, whose works leave definite marks on the landscape, Goldsworthy's approach is to interrupt, shape, or in some other way temporarily alter or work with nature to produce his fragile, mutable pieces. To create "Broken Icicle," for example, Goldsworthy was only able to work on the sculpture in the early morning, when temperatures were below freezing. As with most of his works, ultimately, the materials used to create this piece returned to their natural state, leaving no trace of the artwork's existence save for the stunning photos in this book.

Customer Reviews:

Awe inspiring photography from the master of nature........2007-09-17

This is classic Andy at his finest. A must have for your coffee table, bookshelf or any tucked away corner or your home. Fantastic intro book to get anyone to know Andy and his work. A great gift. Pick up a few for yourself.

Beautiful.......2007-07-30

This is a beautiful and original look at nature as art. Gorgeous photos and well put together, insightful commentary by the artist.

Absolutely superb.......2007-07-12

I cannot reccomend this book enough. It is one of the freshest and most unique photo / art books I have ever seen. Goldsworthy's ideas are rock solid and the book will amaze anyone with even the slightest desire to see good art.

When I had lost all hope ..........2007-05-12

I have tried to find Andy Goldsworthy's 'Ice and Sno' for quite a few years without any luck. I had already given up on ever finding it again at a reasonable price when this new title appeared. This books contains photographs of Andy's many and various creations, including quite a few in ice and snow. I am really happy with it!

So Beautiful it brings tears to your eyes.......2007-05-03

Some of the work is so beautiful I could cry. Some delight, some amaze, some leave you reflective. It makes you want to go out and experiment in the world yourself or take a walk. It is truly an amazing book.

Audubon's Birds of America: The Audubon Society Baby Elephant Folio

Average customer rating:

A Good Companion
Spectacular
Why reorganize a symphony?
Beautiful volume of audubon

Audubon's Birds of America: The Audubon Society Baby Elephant Folio
John James Audubon
Manufacturer: Abbeville Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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John James Audubon (Gift Edition): Writings and Drawings (Library of America, 113)
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Birds: The Art of Ornithology

ASIN: 1558591281

Book Description

One of Abbeville's most spectacular achievements, representing the highest standards in fine art printing, now available at a more economical price.

This marvelous edition of Audubon's Birds of America displays all 435 of Audubon's brilliant handcolored engravings in exquisite reproductions taken from the original plates of the Audubon Society's archival copy of the rare Double Elephant Folio. Although many attempts have been made to re-create the magnificent illustrations in Audubon's masterpiece, nothing equals the level of fidelity or scale achieved in this high-quality edition.

Completely reorganized and annotated by Roger Tory Peterson, who was America's best-known ornithologist, and issued with the full endorsement and cooperation of the Audubon Society, this volume is the first to rearrange the plates in a more scientific order. Peterson's fascinating introduction places Audubon in the context of the history of American ornithological art and also reproduces a wide sampling of the work of Audubon's notable predecessors and disciples, including Peterson's own justly famous paintings.

This new systematic arrangement of the prints, complete with informative commentaries about each bird, made it possible to correct many of the problems or errors in Audubon's original edition that later scholarship revealed.

Other Details: 428 full-color illustrations, 435 duotones.

Customer Reviews:

A Good Companion.......2007-07-14

Having recently read the biography of Audubon, I was very interested in seeing the actual drawings. The book I read had a few of them in black and white, but I wanted to see a larger sample in color. I decided to see if Amazon had anything and was very surprised to see that they offered all of the original drawings in color for a very small price. I realized the book would be smaller than the original life size drawings, but was a little surprised to find that the book was so small. That is my main problem with the book. Otherwise - WOW. To see these birds in all their glory in full color is just breathtaking. Furthermore, when you consider the original size, to have shrunk them down and still maintain the detail and the beauty is quite impressive. One can appreciate the drawings without having read about Audobon's struggle to create and then publish them, but I would suggest this book as a companion to a good biography of Audobon. Once you have both, his accomplishment can be fully appreciated.

Spectacular.......2005-08-02

This book is spectacular. The images are breathtaking, and the quality of their presentation is nothing short of superb. Wow!!!

Why reorganize a symphony?.......2004-11-30

Let me qualify my remarks by first saying that I have not even seen this version. I have no doubt that the printing is of the highest quality, but I have a serious reservation about the organization of this book. Audubon deliberately mixed his birds in a non-taxonomic order to maintain a freshness and an element of suprise. I recently acquired a large format copy published by Welcome Rain, which follows Audubon's original order. The effect is a delightful romp through nature, full of suprises, drama and movement. He never intended it to be a catalog with all his ducks in a row, it was to be an experience. I have seen an abridged, small format edition of his paintings arranged in the standard, dull taxonomic order of a typical field guide and the effect is nothing like seeing them in the order Audubon intended. Rearranging the plates for convenience of listers diminishes this work, and to a certain extent, is a disservice to the artist. While I am happy to see that his work remains in print and is being reproduced at very high standards, I would hope that it would be viewed as a symphony, not as a random collection of notes needing to be organized alphabetically.

Beautiful volume of audubon.......2004-07-16

If you are a birder and you collect all the great bird books, your collection is not complete until you get this. A beautiful book, contained in a hard case, with excellent printing. A steal at $250 at its original price, now knocked down between $125 to $185. Get this book! A great tribute to Peterson and Audubon.

A Field Guide to Reptiles & Amphibians of Eastern & Central North America (Peterson Field Guide Series)

Average customer rating:

Excellent resource
FANTASTIC!
Useful... not so user friendly
I love this
Great Guide

A Field Guide to Reptiles & Amphibians of Eastern & Central North America (Peterson Field Guide Series)
Roger Conant , and Joseph T. Collins
Manufacturer: Houghton Mifflin
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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A Field Guide to Western Reptiles and Amphibians (Peterson Field Guides(R))

ASIN: 0395904528

Book Description

This newly designed field guides features detailed descriptions of 595 species and subspecies. The 656 full-color illustrations and 384 drawings show key details for accurate identification. More than 100 color photographs and 333 color photographs and 333 color distribution maps accompany the species descriptions.

Customer Reviews:

Excellent resource.......2007-09-08

We live on a lake and frequently refer to this book to identify our water and woodland snakes.This book is very user friendly.

FANTASTIC!.......2007-07-12

This is a wonderful seller. My guide arrived very promptly and in great condition!! Terrific buy!

Useful... not so user friendly.......2007-06-12

National Audubon's original field guide, and perhaps the most recent one, is much better organized and easier to use in the field.

I love this.......2006-11-25

I love this book because I have the National Audubon Society First Field Guide for reptiles and I would often run in to reptile that the I couldn't Identify. I knew that I needed a bigger better book. So I bought the western and eastern Peterson Field guide for reptiles and amphibians and it had a lot more reptiles and it had amphibian which I never had a book that had information about them before, it has a lot more reptiles and it's shows you were they are each located. It give you a detailed description of each animal and a detailed drawing of each animal. Because of this I have been able to identify reptiles and amphibian that I couldn't before. I don't like that the maps for the eastern book are not as easy to find for some of the animals.

Great Guide.......2005-02-21

I'm starting to get interested in amphibian id and was looking for a book to help as I join in on frog monitoring and other citizen science projects. So, I haven't gotten to use this book in the field yet since it's still midwinter but the book seems like just what I need. It's a typical field guide in that it has the species plates. Pictures in this section are well drawn with color variations and patterns clearly shown and also described in words. Then there are the species-specific entries where each animal is described, habitats and location maps are provided, foods are described, etc. What I especially like about this book is that in this section they also have actual photographs of the animals shown. The photos are close-up so you can see the eggs or the young of snakes for example. I especially love the section on salamanders and decided not to bother trying to get a book dedicated to salamanders just yet. This has all the info I'll need to get going on understanding and identifying these creatures. Looking forward to a trek out to the vernal pools in March and bringing this book with me.

Average customer rating:

Excellent Product & Prompt Delivery
Escher and imagination
Worlds Above the Rest
I'm a big fan.
fun and imaginative!

Sector 7 (Caldecott Honor Book)

Manufacturer: Clarion Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Tuesday
Flotsam (Caldecott Medal Book)
June 29, 1999
Free Fall
The Three Pigs

ASIN: 0395746566

Amazon.com

In another wondrous, wordless picture book by Caldecott Medal winner David Wiesner (Tuesday and June 29, 1999), a class visiting the Empire State Building finds complete cloud cover and no visibility. One boy makes friends with a cloud (identifiable in the mists by the red mittens, hat, and scarf and swipes from the boy), and goes AWOL on a wonderful adventure. The cloud whisks him away to the "Sector 7" floating cloud factory, a bizarre sky station that looks like a Victorian design for a submarine.

Hiding behind his new cumulonimbus friend, the boy enters an area resembling Grand Central Station (complete with "Arrivals" and "Departures" boards) and watches officious human types in uniform giving the clouds their weather assignments. When the clouds complain to the boy that their assigned shapes are boring, he, a talented artist, creates new blueprints for them. The stuffy grownups are furious when clouds start emerging in the shape of fantastic fish; they shout at the clouds, tear up the new designs, and escort the boy back to his school group. But the revolt of the clouds is unstoppable now, and in the last few pages the skies over Manhattan suddenly get a lot more interesting. (Click to see a sample spread. Copyright 1999 by David Wiesner. With permission of Clarion Books.) (Ages 2 to 8) --Richard Farr

Book Description

Only the person who gave us Tuesday could have devised this fantastic tale, which begins with a school trip to the Empire State Building. There a boy makes friends with a mischievous little cloud, who whisks him away to the Cloud Dispatch Center for Sector 7 (the region that includes New York City). The clouds are bored with their everyday shapes, so the boy obligingly starts to sketch some new ones. . . . The wordless yet eloquent account of this unparalleled adventure is a funny, touching story about art, friendship, and the weather, as well as a visual tour de force.

Customer Reviews:

Excellent Product & Prompt Delivery.......2007-09-15

This item was exactly as described in the item description. It was in the original packaging and is in excellent condition. I am very satisfied and I highly recommend this seller and product to everyone. This is an excellent book by an excellent author!

Escher and imagination.......2007-08-05

Flotsam and Freefall were the first two books I explored by David Wiesner. Sector 7 is not to be missed either. Wiesner's style and creativity are wonderful explorations for all humans(and especially children). M.C. Escher has an honored presence in this book, as he does in Freefall. The theme of flying is present here, as in all of Wiesner's books, and the fanciful creative nature of Wiesner's story and illustrations (paintings?) are not to be missed. Second language learners will immediately have something to say (in their own language) about this book. So will everyone else who reads it. Anyone who has taken the time to sit back and enjoy the show clouds put on will appreciate the ideas within this book. Don't hesitate!

Worlds Above the Rest.......2007-05-07

Wiesner, D. (1999). Sector 7. New York: Clarion Books.

Synopsis: Cloud watching on a lazy day while lying in the grass, is a fun summertime activity for adults and children of all ages. But how are these clouds formed? Who created them? David Wiesner amazes readers once again with another wordless book that tells the incredible adventure of a young boy who goes on a field trip to the Empire State Building. The imaginative and creative young boy yearns to express his creativity meanwhile he is approached by a friendly cloud that takes for a tour of Sector 7 where clouds are created for this portion New York City. Sector 7 resembles an old train station with departure and arrival times posted which provide clouds with their assigned locations. The boy encounters clouds that are bored with their usual shapes. With a wild imagination and skilled artistry, he designs inspiring shapes that excite the clouds. When the staff discovers the changes, they are perturbed by the clouds that stray from their usual and regimented routines. The boy is sent back to his class field trip. However there is no undoing the chaos he has created which begins to spread out across Sector 7.

Evaluation: David Wiesner's Caldecott Honor award winning book allows readers to create the text and interpretations within their minds. Wiesner's wordless tale captures your mind with its full page watercolor illustrations and story board formatted frames. The vivid, yet soft watercolor illustrations provide humor combined with elegance. Readers can create their own individual stories based on their personal experiences. The main character is wildly imaginative with a talent for skilled artistry. Wiesner's tale leaves readers wondering if there are depots like Sector 7 where imaginative clouds are created. Educators will find that this tale allows children to create their own words to this magical adventure. It will encourage struggling writers to utilize their imaginations and picture themselves in the boy's position and be able to write a terrific tale of visiting the place where clouds are made. Children ages 6-10 will love this enchanting journey.

I'm a big fan........2007-02-25

I loved the art in this book. A great story told through pictures.

fun and imaginative!.......2006-11-07

My 5 year old loves this book and wants to read it a couple of times a week. He always asks new questions as he points out things he hadn't discovered last time. Even telling this story (since there are no words) changes each time as you(as the reader) will surely discover more things as well.

Average customer rating:

Magical Garden inspired my students
Art Appreceation for children
Great for Toddlers
Breathtaking journey for children into Monet's paintings

The Magical Garden of Claude Monet
Laurence Anholt
Manufacturer: Barron's Educational Series
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Accessories:

The Magical Garden of Claude Monet (Anholt's Artists Books for Children)
Degas and the Little Dancer
Camille and the Sunflowers

ASIN: 0764155741

Book Description

Julie is a happy little girl who lives in Paris, but she wishes she could walk in a country garden. Julie is pleased when her mother decides to take her to visit the most wonderful garden in the world, owned by a great friend of the family. They arrive at their destination, and for this little girl it is like walking in a dreamy world where twisting plants grow as tall as trees. When Julie's dog runs away, she asks the gardener to help find her pet, and soon she and the gardener are friends. But this amiable, bearded old man is a very unusual gardener, for not only does he cultivate his many plants, he also paints beautiful pictures of them. Julie has made a friend of the great impressionist painter, Claude Monet. Based on a true story about the daughter of another fine artist, Berthe Morisot, this charmingly illustrated picture book includes reproductions by author-illustrator Laurance Anholt of a famous waterlilies painting, which Monet completed in his garden at Giverny, a few miles from Paris.

Customer Reviews:

Magical Garden inspired my students.......2006-08-12

Anholt's lovely book about Monet is my favorite of the series about famous artists. He demystifies impressionism and actually inspires children to paint their own "magical gardens"!!

Art Appreceation for children.......2005-11-11

Fine art apprecation was a lost thing among adults let alone children, encouraging an understanding of art at a young age will encorage intrest in art in children and their caregivers alike. Help kids enjoy art and culture while reading a fun story. With this book, (and the others in the series) they introduce kids to the famous artworks of great painters throughout history while encoraging a childs imagination to be creative and tell a story with each picture.

This story is even better because it is based on factual people, even the little girl. She embarks on a journey with her mother to visit a friend..the little girl ends up chasing her runaway dog on the trip and finds herself in a most magnificent garden..only to find out that is the "friend" they were going to visit. This book is wonderful, historical, educational, and fun. It encourages children to think about paintings, and to form images and stories for each one, to think about "what would it be like to be inside that painting".

Great for Toddlers.......2005-08-13

The Magical Garden of Claude Monet is a great way to expose young children to impressionist art. My son loved the story of Julie in Monet's garden. Julie is a young French girl who takes a train with her Mother to visit Monet's garden. As they arrive into the countryside, her dog runs away and is found in Monet's garden. Soon the painter and Julie become friends. The illustrations are bright and colorful. You almost feel as if you are inside one of Monet's paintings. Children will be captivated by the story as well as the beautiful pictures.

Breathtaking journey for children into Monet's paintings.......2004-10-16

I have long been a fan of Linnea in Monet's Garden - so I was very excited to find this new series of books by Laurence Anholt. Anholt's approach to introducing children to these artists - he has covered Monet, Picasso, Van Gogh, Degas, and DaVinci - is to use their art to create the backgrounds and settings for his characters. This book in particular is my favorite of the series because it is crowned with a fold out of Monet's vivid Waterlilies with a tiny boat floating across it carrying the story's members - Monet and a little girl who happens upon his garden. Before it is over, the little girl plucks one of the lilies from the famous painting as a memoir. My daughter loves this picture - and it is almost surreal to me to see Monet's art coming to life in such a manner. I can hardly wait until she visits the museum and sees the real painting. Watching her make this connection should be very exciting.

Aside from this stunning mixture of Monet's work and Anholt's own lush artwork - carefully drawn to compliment the featured art - the book gives some great educational information about Monet by weaving it into the story - all this without ever starting to sound like a textbook. The story retains its' focus and its' charm without becoming boring. That is an amazing accomplishment in my opinion.

I hope to purchase the entire set for a lovely and educational Christmas gift. These are sure to become beloved classics. Any children's book that learns to entertain both child and parent equally often does.

Average customer rating:

Beautiful work, best for oil or acrylic artists
Realistic paintings
Painting Animals

Painting Animals
Christophe Drochon , and FranCoise Coffrant
Manufacturer: New Holland
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Instructional & How-To | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Landscape Painting | Instructional & How-To | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 1845375459

Book Description

Enter the extraordinary world of painter Christophe Drochon, who, for the first time, opens up his studio and allows us a privileged glimpse into his art. Frequently focusing on animals, his strikingly realistic yet dreamlike images reveal nature’s beauty and fragility, as well as Drochon’s profound concern over its destruction. As he creates, we watch the progression from initial sketches done outdoors ‘from life’ to painstaking studio work. Examples in a range of media showcase the different ways he captures a big cat’s baleful gaze, a macaw’s luminous plumage, and the ominous peace of a slumbering polar bear. Françoise Coffrant supplies illuminating, authoritative commentary.

Customer Reviews:

Beautiful work, best for oil or acrylic artists.......2007-07-10

If you aim to paint ultra-real, exciting wildlife art, Christophe Drochon's work can't help but inspire you. His rendering of lambent cat eyes, fur glowing in the sun and dramatic scenes are some of the best.

This book is aimed to the oil and acrylic artist or anyone working in opaque mediums as opposed to the more expressive and loose styles of watercolor and pastel. You can get ideas for colored pencil and sharpened pastel as well as gouache but this is really primarily for oil painters.

There are sufficient demos to give good instruction for the more advanced artist, but you need some grounding in your medium before you attempt work such as this. In other words, not for beginners except as inspiration and simply to admire an exceptional artist's work.

Realistic paintings.......2007-06-13

Beautiful detailed realistic paintings. Shows illustrated stages from sketch to painting. He works in Acrylic, Gouache, oils and oil pastels.

````````````Wildlife Art

Painting Animals.......2007-01-10

An outstanding book. It arrived in mint condition and is a wonderful addition to my art collection.

Average customer rating:

A Great Read
engrossing good read
enjoyable, fast, fairly well written
The Bird Artist Soars
Delightful and Humorous

The Bird Artist: A Novel
Howard Norman
Manufacturer: Picador
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0312130279

Amazon.com

Though judging a book by its cover is ill-advised, assessing The Bird Artist by its first paragraph is a safe bet. Howard Norman's second novel lives up to all expectations promised by the kind of beginning that makes a reader beg for more and then panic that the rest will not be as good: "My name is Fabian Vas. I live in Witless Bay, Newfoundland. You would not have heard of me." "Obscurity is not necessarily failure, though; I am a bird artist, and have more or less made a living at it. Yet I murdered the lighthouse keeper, Botho August, and that is an equal part of how I think of myself."

There are echoes of Vladimir Nabokov's infamous narrator, Humbert Humbert, in Fabian's confessional tone, witty humor, and emotional detachment from the series of bizarre events he describes. Set at the turn of the century in a remote cod-fishing community, The Bird Artist is a love story of sorts, filled with curious characters and a chowder restaurant. The men wear "knitted underwear all year round lined with fleece calico" and periodically escape the island to pursue their livelihoods on the sea. But the women are land bound. Helen Twombly suspects fellow villagers of stealing her milk bottles. Alaric Vas suffers from arthritis that no liniment relieves and plots her son's arranged marriage with a fourth cousin in Richibucto, New Brunswick. Meanwhile, Fabian's childhood love, Margaret Handle, propels herself and the plot forward with unwieldy energy. How did things for a mild-mannered man who just likes "to wake up early, wash my face, and get out and draw birds" go so wrong?

Norman, a folklorist and naturalist, presents us with the possible explanations in the form of fine details from an island life he researched while living in a remote Inuit whale-hunting community. He carefully examines the inner isolation of his characters. The severe landscape and the weather serve as the perfect metaphor. If you're looking for linguistic pyrotechnics, Norman's economy won't suit you. In The Bird Artist--a finalist for the 1994 National Book Award--there is as much to admire on the page as what's not. --Cristina Del Sesto

Book Description

ABOUTBOOK: My name is Fabian Vas. I live in Witless Bay, Newfoundland. You would not have beard of me. Obscurity is not necessarily failure, though; I am a bird artist, and have more or less made a living at it. Yet I murdered the lighthouse keeper, Botho August, and that is an equal part of how I think of myself." With its first paragraph, The Bird Artist announces its central themes. Set in a tiny coastal town, The Bird Artist addresses universal concerns: the safety of the known versus the attraction of the unknown, the redemptive potential of creative expression, and the transfiguring -- perhaps damaging -- power of the human heart. In developing these themes, Norman's prose reflects the unique landscape of Witless Bay: spare and beautiful, with stark emotion jutting out like cliffs above the sea. This guide was designed to illuminate your exploration of Norman's landscape, and we hope that it allows you to venture out into further discussion and study of this remarkable novel. DISCUSSIONQUES: QToward the end of The Bird Artist Fabian paints a mural on the church wall depicting not only the physical aspects of Witless Bay, but also representations of its residents and recent events. How is Fabian's narration of his story similar to the mural he paints? QHoward Norman spent time in an Inuit whale-hunting community in Greenland. The Bird Artist opens with the following epigraph: "Suddenly, with extreme violence, he felt himself seized by the desire to be, rain or no rain, at any price, in the midst of the valleys: alone" (Giorgio Bassani, The Heron). What role does the theme of isolation, both geographic and emotional, play in Norman's novel? QHoward Norman has said that he originally wrote The Bird Artist because of Margaret Handle -- that "she puppeteers many things in the book." He also "tried to develop landscape as a character." What do Margaret and the landscape of Witless Bay have in common, and how do they shape and affect the book's events? QThe final chapter of The Bird Artist comments on the etiquette of correspondence: "A man sends a letter, a man expects a reply." This chapter also contains a lengthy letter from Orkney to Fabian. What role do letters, and mail, play in the book? Which characters write letters, and which do not? What purpose (purposes) does writing play in this narrative? QOn page 163, Margaret remembers a song her mother sang: "There's no love/true as the love/that dies untold," and tells Fabian that "It means, once a third person -- outside the couple in love -- knows a bout the love, it's diminished somehow." How does her interpretation relate to the novel's events? Could the song have a different meaning? QSome critics found mythic qualities in The Bird Artist. If a myth is "traditional story of ostensibly historical events that serves to unfold part of the world view of a people or explain a practice, belief, or natural phenomenon," what does Fabian's story explain or unfold? How does it pertain to the world beyond Witless Bay? QAt his trial, Fabian recalls, "I saw Bevel Cabot, Miriam Auster, Giles La Cotte, Ruth Henley, Olive Perrault. Toward the back were Elmer Wyatt, Peter Kieley, Patrick Flood holding his son Colin, Seamus Doyle." How does the community play a role in Fabian's crime and punishment? Although we never "meet" these characters, what is their significance here? What other writers have used a similar device to convey a group's identity and role? QIn saving Alaric's life, Enoch warns her against straying too far away from her known village. And yet, the novel also presents the unknown, Halifax, for example, as an exciting place of opportunity. Which view does the book, as a whole, support? Safety or limitlessness? The comfort of the familiar lighthouse or the opportunity of the vast ocean? QNorman's protagonists, at various points in the book, commit murder and adultery, lie and steal. Does The Bird Artist condone, or even admire, such behavior? What stance does the novel take on religion and the church? Is there religious imagery in Fabian's mural? In the text as a whole? QThe narrator, Fabian Vas, introduces himself immediately as a bird artist. What is the role of the artist in this book? How dose it relate to Fabian's position as narrator, or storyteller? AUTHORBIO: Howard Norman grew up in Grand Rapids, Michigan. After graduating from Western Michigan University, he moved to Canada to work as a writer and researcher, with a special interest in the country's indigenous Indian tribes. He is familiar with several Inuit and Algonquin dialects, and his published translations of northern folklore include Where the Chill Came From, How the Glooskap Outwits the Ice Giants (a children's book), and an anthology, Northern Tales, which he selected and edited. In 1977, Norman first encountered the eastern seaboard of Newfoundland, and learned of a local artist who, at the turn of the century, had committed a murder. Armed with a time, a place, and an event, Norman pent the years that followed thinking about the story that would become The Bird Artist. In the meantime, he wrote his first novel, The Northern Lights, which was nominated for the 1987 National Book Award, and a collection of short stories, Kiss in the Hotel Joseph Conrad.

Customer Reviews:

A Great Read.......2007-06-19

All I can say is that "I LOVED this book!" If I, as a writer, can hold the reader as captive in my stories as I was held by The Bird Artist, I will be a truly happy author indeed.

engrossing good read.......2007-03-21

This was my second reading of this book and I believe I may have enjoyed it twice as much the second go-round. The characters were so believable and interesting and the setting was quite visual, made more so by the descriptions of different birds. The first person narration was engaging. I mostly loved the complexity of the characters and their stories but the plot definitely pulled me along as well.

enjoyable, fast, fairly well written.......2005-12-27

a compelling story of an artist's life in a tiny Newfoundland town, around 1900. the bottom line: i couldn't put it down and read it straight through -pretty rare for me in recent years, Norman's foreshadowing and solid character development was enough to successfully create some anticipation and sucker me in. still, it's not a five-star book; the writing is a little uneven, with dialogue sparkling on some pages, not on others, little factoids of Newfoundland life sometimes seem pushed in, sometimes he loses momentum and i occasionally found myself just skimming through paragraphs. but certainly a fine enough book for a plane, vacation, quiet evening, etc. the mix of a long personal history and nice character interaction and development is reminiscent of another recent bestseller, `the kite runner', which is longer and denser, yet seemed executed at a slightly higher level all around - well worth a look if you enjoy `bird artist.'

The Bird Artist Soars.......2005-11-07

There is an elegant simplicity in Howard Norman's language. With the same reticence his characters possess, Norman creates a world -- stark, vivid, enduring and endearing. His characters are complex and human, but never "quirky" or sentimentally odd. They are real people who have earned their peculiar outlooks and responses. The Bird Artist is one of those books that leaves the reader with a debt of gratitude to the author.

Delightful and Humorous .......2005-03-26

I loved this novel, for its humor and its tight and straightforward narration of the plot. The writing is sparing, with only the most necessary details. To write so tightly, the author must have edited it carefully and it shows. Not a sentence is wasted.

You know this book was written `tongue in cheek' from the get-go, because it is set, in the first sentence of the book, in 1900, in a place called Witless Bay, the reverend keeps a talking parrot in a room behind the pulpit, and the parrot squawks during sermons. People's names are funny and the characters are distinct and memorable for their eccentricities.

I especially loved Margaret, who takes all maters of importance in her hand. She also drinks and has a prodigious sexual appetite. She is frequently `over- the-top', shooting bullets through a photograph of her boy-friend's "fiancé-to-be" or taking over his parents' bedroom. She is generally a lot of fun throughout the book.

Other characters are likewise full of vigor, delightful or strange, especially if you don't take them enormously seriously. The book reminded me slightly of Shipping News, which also takes place in New-Finland, though in a different era. It too is as endearing and touching and fun.

The Bird Artist is also an historical novel. I think that for an historical novel to grab you, it has to capture the pace of the era as well as the `spirit' of the people and their geography. The Bird Artist is successful on all accounts, side by side with its humorous identity. It takes you back to the days when light houses were often the only way for fishermen to get back to shore; when it took several days in a mail-boat to get to Halifax, when arranged marriages were not out of the question, and the pace of life allowed time to sit on your porch and paint, without the distractions of a radio or TV.

What a fine, gentle sea breeze this book is!

Leaf Man (Ala Notable Children's Books. Younger Readers (Awards))

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Simple text enhanced with a big dose of creativity!
Beautiful
Beautiful
For leaf lovers!
Creative look at Autumn

Leaf Man (Ala Notable Children's Books. Younger Readers (Awards))
Lois Ehlert
Manufacturer: Harcourt Children's Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf
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ASIN: 0152053042

Book Description

Fall has come, the wind is gusting, and Leaf Man is on the move. Is he drifting east, over the marsh and ducks and geese? Or is he heading west, above the orchards, prairie meadows, and spotted cows? No one's quite sure, but this much is certain: A Leaf Man's got to go where the wind blows.

With illustrations made from actual fall leaves and die-cut pages on every spread that reveal gorgeous landscape vistas, here is a playful, whimsical, and evocative book that celebrates the natural world and the rich imaginative life of children.

Includes an author's note and leaf-identifying labels.

Customer Reviews:

Simple text enhanced with a big dose of creativity!.......2007-07-06

My husband bought this for our two-year old, and we love reading it together with her. The text is simple, as it traces the journey of Leaf Man...the leaves used are magnificent in their colors...some bold, some subdued, but all unique and beautiful. I have since done some basic art projects with my daughter using this book as inspiration. We collect leaves wherever we go and hope to create a little book of our own!

Beautiful.......2007-06-11

My two little readers absolutely delight in this book. They love the language; they enjoy following the leaf man on his autumn journey; and they very much love to read it aloud to any adult who will sit with them for 10 minutes.

Beautiful.......2007-05-24

One of Lois Ehlert's best. I bought it for my mother-in-law who is a gardener and general nature-lover. But I use it to teach about leaves and using your imagination in my preschool art classes. The children all think it's so much fun. They always finish reading with so many more ideas of their own to get started on.

For leaf lovers!.......2006-11-07

My five year old and I really enjoy this book. My son enjoys looking for the pictures the leaves make and I enjoy the fact that the author collected these beautiful leaves, made images out of them and wrote a story around them! Colorful, imaginative, fun to read.

Creative look at Autumn.......2006-10-18

This is a WONDERFUL book! We read it to our class of 3-year-old preschoolers, and they were absolutely captivated. They were so quiet and engaged that they forgot to ask when we were leaving to go on our field trip.
As an added plus, we had one little girl who liked it so much that she had her mom go to the library to check it out to read at home. The child then sat down to re-create the pictures on each page using leaves she picked up in her yard. You know it is a good book if it encourages that degree of creativity and industry in a 3-year-old!

Visions of Nature: The Art And Science of Ernst Haeckel

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Visions of Nature: The Art And Science of Ernst Haeckel
Olaf Breidbach
Manufacturer: Prestel Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Art Forms From The Ocean: The Radiolarian Atlas Of 1862
Art Forms in Nature: The Prints of Ernst Haeckel (Monographs)
Haeckel's Art Forms from Nature CD-ROM and Book (Dover Electronic Clip Art)
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Super Vision: A New View of Nature

ASIN: 3791336649

Book Description

A famous biologist and scientist, Haeckel was also enormously influential in the art world, particularly the Art Nouveau and Surrealist movements, and his elaborate and mesmerizing illustrations are the subject of continued interest by artists and designers. From his minutely detailed renderings of radiolarians and his vivid depictions of embryonic development to his softly colored landscapes of the Italian countryside, these vibrant reproductions of Haeckel's art works demonstrate a profound appreciation for nature's intrinsic design that will continue to inspire artists for generations to come. This volume also features numerous never before published works. One of the foremost scholars on Haeckel's work explores in this book his revolutionary and often contentious theories in evolution, as well as his contributions as a scientist and explorer. Haeckel's influence on modern art and culture is also highlighted in the introduction. Fusing scientific thought with philosophy and molecular structure with design, this richly illustrated profile of a revolutionary thinker and brilliant artist will delight Haeckel's ever-growing audience.

Vija Celmins & Eliot Weinberger: The Stars

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Vija Celmins & Eliot Weinberger: The Stars
Eliot Weinberger , and Vija Celmins
Manufacturer: The Museum of Modern Art, New York
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Vija Celmins (Contemporary Artists)
Vija Celmins
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Drawing from the Modern (3 Volumes)

ASIN: 0870707043
Release Date: 2005-10-15

Book Description

New York artist Vija Celmins has made many images of the night sky--paintings, drawings, and prints of gorgeous richness. In The Stars she and her collaborator, the essayist and translator Eliot Weinberger, devote an artist's book to the theme. Celmins created three celestial prints for the project, which she also designed. One print, inspired by the worn binding of an early 20th-century Japanese book, becomes the volume's mottled deep-blue cover; the second and third prints are images of the night sky, one of them negative--dark stars on a pale ground. For the text, Weinberger assembled a catalogue of descriptions of the stars drawn from around the world, and from an array of historical, literary, and anthropological sources. This mythopoetic charting of the night sky evokes the vastness of the human imagination's response to a space itself vast and unknowable. Appearing in English and also in Arabic, Chinese, Hindi, Japanese, and Maori, the text supplements Celmins's images visually as well as verbally. The Stars was originally a limited-edition livre d'artiste published this year by the Library Council of The Museum of Modern Art.

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