An appealing if rather breathless account of double discoveries: that of London-based American journalist Solomon, who goes to Gorbachev's Moscow and finds a world of vicious deprivation and impenetrable strangeness; and that of the artists he meets along the way, whose long struggle against isolation and obscurity is rewarded with a sudden fame that brings its own disorientation. Solomon first visited the Soviet Union in 1988, when he was sent by a British magazine to cover Sotheby's Sale of Contemporary and Avant-Garde Soviet Art. His expectations were initially modest—'I was determined to visit the U.S.S.R. and thought the Sotheby's sale sounded an ideal opportunity''—but he managed to befriend quite a few of the artists involved, and followed their careers from London after his return. Eventually he helped them travel to Europe and America to exhibit their work, and in 1989 he went to stay with them for some months in Moscow as they prepared a giant exhibition of Soviet and German art. Solomon writes in a leisurely, anecdotal style that makes room for the many different stories comprising this tale: the larger portrait of the various movements and schools of postwar Soviet art, the political and historical forces (culminating in perestroika) that simultaneously resisted and engendered such art, and the (often horrendous) experiences of the artists themselves. The tone is compassionate and engaging throughout and manages to bring the opinions of the author into play without overwhelming the narrative. Thus the frequent digressions—on the nature of creativity, the Russian character, the experience of exile—serve to add depth rather than blur the focus. A good deal less attention might have been paid to the various fetes and soirÇes of the art world, but no doubt some will find them amusing. Timely and enjoyable: a rich collage of personality and adventure.
Pub Date: June 14, 1991
ISBN: 0-394-58513-5
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 1991
An enjoyable slice of 20th-century music journalism almost certain to provide something for most readers, no matter one’s...
Music journalist and musician Wald (Talking 'Bout Your Mama: The Dozens, Snaps, and the Deep Roots of Rap, 2014, etc.) focuses on one evening in music history to explain the evolution of contemporary music, especially folk, blues, and rock.
The date of that evening is July 25, 1965, at the Newport Folk Festival, where there was an unbelievably unexpected occurrence: singer/songwriter Bob Dylan, already a living legend in his early 20s, overriding the acoustic music that made him famous in favor of electronically based music, causing reactions ranging from adoration to intense resentment among other musicians, DJs, and record buyers. Dylan has told his own stories (those stories vary because that’s Dylan’s character), and plenty of other music journalists have explored the Dylan phenomenon. What sets Wald's book apart is his laser focus on that one date. The detailed recounting of what did and did not occur on stage and in the audience that night contains contradictory evidence sorted skillfully by the author. He offers a wealth of context; in fact, his account of Dylan's stage appearance does not arrive until 250 pages in. The author cites dozens of sources, well-known and otherwise, but the key storylines, other than Dylan, involve acoustic folk music guru Pete Seeger and the rich history of the Newport festival, a history that had created expectations smashed by Dylan. Furthermore, the appearances on the pages by other musicians—e.g., Joan Baez, the Weaver, Peter, Paul, and Mary, Dave Van Ronk, and Gordon Lightfoot—give the book enough of an expansive feel. Wald's personal knowledge seems encyclopedic, and his endnotes show how he ranged far beyond personal knowledge to produce the book.
An enjoyable slice of 20th-century music journalism almost certain to provide something for most readers, no matter one’s personal feelings about Dylan's music or persona.Pub Date: July 25, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-06-236668-9
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Dey Street/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis...
Privately published by Strunk of Cornell in 1918 and revised by his student E. B. White in 1959, that "little book" is back again with more White updatings.
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis (whoops — "A bankrupt expression") a unique guide (which means "without like or equal").Pub Date: May 15, 1972
ISBN: 0205632645
Page Count: 105
Publisher: Macmillan
Review Posted Online: Oct. 28, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1972
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