Deborah Willis (1)

I thought I knew photography from reading text by Ansel Adams and Matthew Brady. Then I read Deborah Willis's essay. I will never look at a picture the same way again. Kudos for everyone who worked on it and for SITES to pick it up as a traveling exhibition. Great book.

Captivating snapshots of life from an African-American perspective. The book features pictures of Children, Everyday Life, Work, The Arts, Beauty, Saturday Night, Sunday Morning, Sports, Portraits, Spirituality and Celebration. The pieces of life include photos of everyday folk as well as some famous people like Anna Maria Horsford as a child (she also wrote the Forward), Sanaa Lathan, Malcolm X with his children, and Joe Louis. I even found pictures of women in the small town I was raised show more in as well life photos from historic African American towns like Whitesboro, NJ. This book is a great conversation piece, stirs up memories almost like the smell of apple pie reminds me of my grandmother---a nice warm and fuzzy feeling from being able to identify with the variety of people represented, just living everyday life. Some of the photos are old, from the early 1900's and others are from the late 90's and early 2000's. Great book to have on your coffee table for all to see and browse through. show less

Published months before the election, this book is primarily a pictorial, however, the authors include a brief history of the campaign at the end of the book. Photographs of Obama and his immediate family are included as well as photos of magazine and newspaper covers, supporters, buttons, and bumper stickers. Concise captions are provided for most photos. This book is actually appropriate for all readers.

Photographs gathered in chapters like, children, sports, Sunday, Beauty, work. Not text except credits, foward, introduction labels, and index. From the Smithsonian Museum.