Compelling reading for art lovers.
The intertwined creative and personal lives of two trailblazing artists whose lifestyles were as avant-garde as their work.
The creative and personal lives of Mexican artists Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera were dramatically linked from the time they met. They initially bonded over Frida’s budding attempts at painting, but they soon fell in love. Frida’s life was complicated by injuries she carried from a serious streetcar accident that doctors had not expected her to survive. Diego was a complex man, devoted to his art and communist politics while unwilling to remain faithful to Frida. Their tumultuous relationship and her broken body were both important influences on Kahlo’s deeply personal work, while Rivera’s extensive murals and other works reflected his politics and love of the Mexican people. Reef offers a balanced and cleareyed examination of this powerful relationship, contextualizing it against the backdrop of national politics in Mexico and international change ushered in by the Great Depression and World War II. The account also cogently reveals how these shifts affected the artistic world as well. The clear narrative deftly handles complex political and artistic ideas and sheds light on how the couple’s unusual connection enhanced and occasionally detracted from their work. The many photographs and examples of the artists’ work neatly complement the text.
Compelling reading for art lovers. (timeline, source notes, bibliography; index, not seen) (Nonfiction. 12-16)Pub Date: Aug. 26, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-547-82184-9
Page Count: 176
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: May 13, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2014
Attractively designed and handsomely illustrated, this informative text introduces teens to many intriguing angles on a...
Will the world end in a bang or a whimper? Unless pre-empted by human-induced disaster or one of many scientifically possible catastrophic scenarios, life on Earth will end a billion years from now in a sizzle.
Predicting the end of the world is an old story, argues the author, presenting evidence in brief surveys of eschatologies from the world's major religions and mythologies of ancient civilizations. Miller also notes how end-of-world scenarios have captured humanity's imagination in their frequent appearances in science-fiction novels and motion pictures. (Disappointingly, the reasons for this ongoing fascination are not explored.) A chapter about imminent predictions for 2012 explains the Mayan prophecy and a theory about a phantom planet called Nibiru crashing into Earth. Another chapter examines pseudoscientific end-of-world theories such as planetary alignment and pole shifts. The primary focus is on scientifically plausible scenarios: self-destruction through nuclear war or continued environmental exploitation; humanity wiped out by a pandemic; an asteroid or comet strike destroying Earth.
Attractively designed and handsomely illustrated, this informative text introduces teens to many intriguing angles on a high-interest topic that should inspire many to further explore the subject. (chronology, glossary, bibliography, further reading, index) (Nonfiction. 12-16)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-7613-7396-4
Page Count: 120
Publisher: Twenty-First Century/Lerner
Review Posted Online: Aug. 16, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2011
Catnip for scandal junkies, with a bit of historical perspective stirred in.
A gleefully explicit catalogue of the past century’s headline-grabbing bad behavior.
Aimed at readers who don’t need to be told who Brangelina is but may be hazy on “twisted besties” Leopold and Loeb or even Monica Lewinsky, this edutaining survey presents a wide-angle array of murders, sexual follies, controversial trials, race violence, political corruption and general envelope-pushing from the 1906 killing of Stanford White on. Each of the chronologically arranged entries opens with a capsule “Scoop” followed by a slightly fuller account under a “What Went Down” header. Along with a small black-and-white photo and one or two sidebar quotes, the author tacks on subsequent developments, sometimes-perceptive suggestions about “Why We Still Care” and a short roster of similar incidents in recent history. Though she misspells “Symbionese” and repeatedly awards FDR only three Presidential wins, in general Fryd presents reasonably accurate summaries of events and issues while giving all sides of the more muddled conflicts at least a nod. Additional cred is provided by a teen panel of editorial advisors.
Catnip for scandal junkies, with a bit of historical perspective stirred in. (index) (Nonfiction. 12-16)Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-9827322-0-5
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Zest/Orange Avenue
Review Posted Online: Jan. 8, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2012
BOOK REVIEW
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