Reader Views

Beautiful Places: The Timeless Beauty of South Carolina State Parks

Chad Prosser and photographer Jon O. Holloway have created a beautiful coffee table book commemorating the 75th anniversary of South Carolina State Parks.  The gorgeous photos of the areas in “Beautiful Places” are first-class and one can easily be mesmerized by the beauty found in each one. However, there is more; the book not only shows off the magnificence but also gives details of history and the progression since the unveiling of South Carolina’s first state park in January 1934 contributed by parks historian Cal Harrison.

We all hear of Myrtle Beach and other coastal areas and could assume that’s the only place in South Carolina that calls on the beauty, however, there is so much more to explore. In fact, there are 47 park locations: The Coast; The Midlands; the Upstate.  Going through each page I was quickly drawn into the exquisiteness of each park.  The landscape, the wildlife, the flora, and the sculptures are well depicted and give a fair representation of the area. I was also enthralled by the reflections the photographer was able to capture.

Personally I’ve only been through some of the parks in the Greenville and Spartanburg areas and was able to find the beauty in the enchanted forests.  After perusing “Beautiful Places,” South Carolina is definitely a state that is on my “must visit” list.

In “Beautiful Places: The Timeless Beauty of South Carolina State Parks,” Prosser, Holloway and Harrison have given us an arm-chair glimpse into the gorgeousness of South Carolina.  The journey spent reflecting and admiring the splendor in this book is a wonderful way to entice us to get out of our arm-chair and visit the state.  I’m sure we wouldn’t be disappointed!

Beautiful Places
Chad Prosser with Photography by Jon O. Holloway
Greenleaf Book Group Press (2009)
ISBN 9780979875809
Reviewed by Irene Watson for Reader Views (8/09)

Heat

A flash of skin, breasts, a hand, a mouth open in ecstasy; taboo images. We have all caught glimpses of the blocked transmission of adult films on cable television. Flipping by with the remote control, we think we see something. We flip back by again. Maybe we stop for a few minutes to find out what we can see, always looking over our shoulder to make sure no one walks in the room.

Roger Camp, a photographer from California, not only stopped on this channel, he hooked up his camera equipment and took still photographs. He combined these photographs into "Heat." As the author/artist says in the foreword "…what intrigued me about the images was not their erotic content so much as how the distortion often created images of beauty and grotesquerie far more powerful than the original video."

I picked up this book with the same feeling of excited curiosity as someone stopping on the distorted TV channel. What would I see? Would it be titillating and sexy? Maybe the first glance through the book was that way. But as I explored more, read the foreword by Roger Camp, read the essay by Fine Arts professor Bert Yarborough, and studied the fifty color photographs, my thoughts and feelings turned in a more analytical and observatory direction.

Roger Camp is not a dirty old man looking for an excuse to watch and exploit pornography. He is an accomplished artist who sees and photographs images of light, shape, and color. Swatches of blues, reds, and greens color the bodies. Wavy lines of distortion drag eyes, limbs, and breasts into odd shapes and angles. His images are sometimes beautiful, and sometimes disturbing. This is not because of the subject matter, but because of the way the subject matter has been captured.

"Heat" by Roger Camp is a book for any curious mind looking to be stimulated in more ways than one. The richly printed images, slick pages, and strong binding make this a valuable art book for your shelf. The taboo subject matter makes a bold statement and conversation starter. The artist’s intentions make this a book that you will pick up again and again, finding something new and interesting each time.

Heat
Roger Camp
Charta Books (2008)
ISBN 9788881586783
Reviewed by April Sullivan for Reader Views (9/08)

The Art of Everyday Joe: A Collector’s Journal

When I saw this book, my thoughts echoed a phrase on the back cover exactly, “Finally, It’s Here!”  A book that would explain the ins and outs of art collecting.  What type of art should I collect?  Who are the up-and-coming new artists?  Where do I find the best art?  What should I be looking for to make my art collection shine? 

In “The Art of Everyday Joe: A Collector’s Journal” I found the answers I needed, without finding the answers to any of these questions.  There is no right and wrong when looking at art, you go with what moves you.  I should have known that.  It was nice to have this book remind me in a subtle, easy manner. 

As an artist myself, I was also drawn to this book to find out how others view art.  What is an art collector looking for?  What does an art collector look like?  Where do I find them?  Again, I was expecting hard and fast answers.  I got a reminder in simplicity.  The art collectors are looking for the artists to create from their hearts so that they can buy from their hearts.  Art collectors are anyone and everyone.  The “Everyday Joe!”

Michael Corbin’s “The Art of Everyday Joe” is the second in a series of “Collector’s Journals.”  A writer by profession and lover of art, Michael uses essays on all topics to make the reader realize that art is all around us.  In his essays he talks about a varied range of topics such as rudeness, airports, and bubblewrap.  Some essays are about specific artists or art forms.  Others barely mention art at all.  But all have the same purpose -- to show us that collecting art is not stuffy and only for the rich.  Cover your walls from floor to ceiling with art from living, working artists.  Tear that Picasso image out of that magazine and frame it.  Revel in the beauty of the oatmeal box! 

In “The Art of Everyday Joe: A Collector’s Journal,” author Michael K. Corbin uses images from his art collection to enhance the book and complement the essays.  He did a great job of matching art with essays and showed a variety of art styles.  It was a pleasure flipping through and looking at the art, and I am sure quite a thrill for the author to show off his art collection to so many people.  Corbin’s writing style is simple, sometimes rambling, but always passionate, no matter the topic.  This series is exactly what the art world needs.  I expect Michael Corbin to spread the word far and wide.

The Art of Everyday Joe: A Collector’s Journal
Michael K. Corbin
AuthorHouse (2008)
ISBN 9781434332134
Reviewed by April Sullivan for Reader Views (6/08)

Theaters and Theater Companies of New York 2008

Reviewing the table of contents and the many theaters listed makes me want to book tickets right now! I love going to the theater, but haven’t had the chance to make it to Broadway. I have been a strong supporter of live productions in the West End in London and of various local companies throughout the United Kingdom and here in Texas. My dream vacation is to make it to New York City and see a different play every night. This book provides a quick introduction to the theaters in the area. Or at least the ones which the authors deem worthy!
                                
For each of the over sixty theaters, there is a brief summary of the history of the building and the type of work produced there. All types of contact information are listed for those wishing to view a play as well as for those in the business, including the number of seats. The authors don’t mind sharing their opinions of the work produced in the theaters or those producing it. There are sections called “Did You Know?” sprinkled throughout, providing bits of information about theater in general which seemed to be directed to the average reader and kept me turning the pages.  For instance, I learned that the only tickets I can afford are Off-Off Broadway union productions at $18.00 per ticket. But is a thespian really a theater lover and not an actor? There are also black and white photos of various locations, but they are not very interesting and seem only to serve the purpose of taking up space.

I had hoped for more information about the history of the buildings and maybe titillating stories about the actors who had walked the boards. Or even a few ghost tales. I would have enjoyed notes about which seats were best and which ones to avoid. There was no index and the table of contents was not alphabetized making it time-consuming to locate a particular theater. I did appreciate the explanation of the various types of theaters, such as Broadway or Off-Broadway, especially in how it relates to prices.

An annoying feature includes the advertisements for other publications by the publisher. I would rather they were at the end, if included at all. The authors’ opinions are very strong about some locations, making me sometimes wonder if they have a vendetta against some of the theater owners.

As I finished reading “Theaters and Theater Companies of New York 2008,” I was still curious about who this book was written for. There wasn’t enough background for tourists to pick it up in addition to other guide books. Would anyone consider the 105 pages, of which 63 are pictures or advertisements, worth the price charged? Maybe this is a start for someone looking for a location to produce their new play, but I would imagine they would quickly move on to the internet where information is updated more frequently. I think I’d rather save my money for a theater ticket!

Theaters and Theater Companies of New York 2008
M. Stefan Strozier and Anthony Rubino, Jr.
World Audience, Inc. (2008)
ISBN 9781934209837
Reviewed by Tammy Petty Conrad for Reader Views (5/08)

Papa Do Run: A Baby Boomer Looks (and Laughs) at Vintage Rock & Roll

My first glance of the cover let me know I was in for a great read. The cover is designed so that you feel like the book will be energetic and fun to read. The author, Deborah Godin, is a true fan of good old-fashioned rock and roll. She refers to it as “Vintage Rock and Roll.” In “Papa Do Run” she reminisces about the songs from the old days and how they impacted her generation. She mentions that each generation will think that they came from the best musical era. While I agree that people might feel that way, I found myself feeling sorry for the most recent generation of youth who are raised on music that tends to be disrespectful and seems like it is more interested in getting away with saying something bad, than saying something that has meaning. Maybe that seems too deep, but when you read “Papa Do Run” and reminisce about music from those days, I think that you will agree with me.

Deborah Godin either has a phenomenal memory, or she has really done a lot of research for this book. She extensively discusses artists, the music, the lyrics, what was happening at the time and what was happening at her life in this time. I also learned about the origins and meanings of many of the songs. I was born a few years after the baby boomer generation ended, yet I still remember a lot of these songs. I also have been fortunate enough to see a few of the bands mentioned in concert like Rush and Jefferson Starship. How incredible it is that they are still playing today!

I wish I had read a book like this when I was taking music classes in school. It really would have given me a greater appreciation and understanding of the origins of this type of music. “Papa Do Run” would make an excellent gift for someone who was raised on music from this time. I was thinking that this would make a great Father’s Day gift. If you give this as a gift or read it yourself, you might find yourself up in the attic looking for some old vinyl records! What a great way to drive your kids crazy!

Deborah Godin
BookSurge (2007)
ISBN 9781419668203
Reviewed by Paige Lovitt for Reader Views (9/07)

Wabi-Sabi: For Artists, Designers, Poets & Philosophers

Leonard Koren
Stone Bridge Press (2006)
ISBN 1880656124
Reviewed by Patty Inglish for Reader Views (4/07)

The Japanese tea ceremony is popular in global literature, movies, and theater to the point of what seems a small cult following. Westerners wonder at its significance and find it mystic. “Wabi-Sabi” by Leonard Koren provides us with a glimpse of its underlying importance that can be taken as a symbol for the whole of the wabi-sabi aesthetic. To clearly define wabi-sabi in words is to destroy it. However, this book succeeds in preserving wabi-sabi’s identity as a way of existence of all things in eternal transition.

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13 Books

Reviewed by Irene Watson for Reader Views (7/06)

“13 Books” is not a book to be read lightly, it is a book where Leonard Koren explains the process that took place when he created his 12 books and a magazine. Koren is not only an author but an architect and artist. Several of his creations are: WET: The magazine of Gourmet Bathing; Wabi-Sabi; New Fashion Japan; The Graphic Design Cookbook; and, How to Take a Japanese Bath. Anyone familiar with Koren’s work would find this book very enlightening.

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"Koalas: Moving Portraits of Serenity"

Edited by Joanne Ehrich
Koala Jo Publishing (2006)
Reviewed by Irene Watson for Reader Views (4/06)

What a beautiful book! When I opened the package containing “Koalas: Moving Portraits of Serenity,” I just gasped because this gorgeous piece of art blew me away. The other thing that impressed me was the fresh smell of the print on the glossy pages. The first thing I did was feel the cover – I wanted to pet the Koalas!
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"Treehouse Chronicles"

S. Peter Lewis, author & photographer; T.B.R. Walsh, illustrator

TMC Books, LLC (2005)

Reviewed by Tammy Petty Conrad for Reader Views (2/06)

Not just for carpenters or those good with their hands, this book is for everyone who dreams or has had a fantastical project in mind. Peter Lewis’s enthusiasm and determination is contagious as you read through the beautifully illustrated pages telling his story of a three year process involving every family member and most of his friends along the way. A true dreamer, he didn’t just build a kid’s tree fort, but an elaborate two story timberframe structure fully finished inside with sanded floors and painted walls. It eventually included a spiral staircase and a pivoting drawbridge, although 39 feet about the ground.

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