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The French art of seduction

Review by Henry L. Carrigan Jr.

In one of the most hilarious and poignant scenes in his classic comedy Annie Hall, Woody Allen brilliantly depicts the art of seduction. One afternoon after a tennis match, Annie (Diane Keaton) invites Alvy (Allen) back to her apartment for a drink; standing on her terrace, the two range over a number of topics even as subtitles flash across the bottom of the screen depicting each character’s real thoughts. As much as they might desire each other’s bodies, they crave the pleasure that intellectual foreplay nourishes. In addition, when these two cease to desire each other and seek mere physical gratification, the relationship ends.

As Elaine Sciolino, the Paris correspondent for the New York Times, so vividly reveals in her alluring and irresistible exploration of plaisir (blandly translated into English as “pleasure”), seduction in France does not always involve body contact.

As we come to learn in La Seduction, seduction in France encompasses a grand mosaic of meanings; what is constant is the intent: to attract or influence, to win over, even if just in fun. With a slow passionate burn, she explores the early history of the idea of seduction, teaching us that intellectual foreplay, the allure of the flesh and the temptation of scent all artfully enhance the pleasure of playing political, economic or sexual games. For the French, if an individual seduces with a delicious meal and a glass of excellent wine, a promise of romance, an intoxicating scent and a lively game of words, then he or she has led you to a place where you can find freedom to enjoy and savor the best that life has to offer.

Drawing on interviews with politicians, artists, philosophers and men and women from all walks of life, as well as her deeply charming and absorbing readings of French film and literature, Sciolino captivates us with scenes of seduction played out in political offices, butcher shops and sidewalk cafes. Her perhaps most memorable line—“I had never had a gastronomic orgasm before I met Guy Savoy”—reminds us of the power of food to seduce. In France, she observes, food is consistently presented as a source of pleasure, and gustatory pleasure is so close to amatory delight that the lines may sometimes blur.

Sciolino’s charming tales of the French art of seduction will entertain and delight readers, and instruct us in how best to embrace life’s joys and celebrate every moment of our lives and loves.

In one of the most hilarious and poignant scenes in his classic comedy Annie Hall, Woody Allen brilliantly depicts the art of seduction. One afternoon after a tennis match, Annie (Diane Keaton) invites Alvy (Allen) back to her apartment for a drink; standing on her…

Arts & CultureArt

Saving the world

Review by bookpagedev

The Marvel Vault is a sturdy yet elegant, spiral-bound tribute to the art and artistry of the Marvel Comic Group, which since 1939 has fed the imaginations of millions through its tales of unique superheroes achieving fantastical feats. Authors Roy Thomas and Peter Sanderson, both former Marvel editors, provide a readable text that runs down Marvel’s early years, its growth during WWII (lots of stories about defeating the Nazi threat), its growing pains through the 1950s (its more lurid products tamed by the Comics Code Authority), and on to the latter day, where it is still churning out wild adventures featuring characters like Spider-Man, Fantastic Four and X-Men. The text is dominated by colorful reprints of comic book covers and pages, plus samples of exploratory draftwork, photos of the artists at work and play, and plastic-encased ephemera cataloging the Marvel culture (various documents, correspondence, postcards, posters, trading cards, etc.). This wonderfully produced and agreeably priced gift also supplies welcome insight into a slice of pop-culture history.

The Marvel Vault is a sturdy yet elegant, spiral-bound tribute to the art and artistry of the Marvel Comic Group, which since 1939 has fed the imaginations of millions through its tales of unique superheroes achieving fantastical feats. Authors Roy Thomas and Peter Sanderson,…
Arts & CultureArt

Still MAD after all these years

Review by bookpagedev

Contemporary with Schulz’s mid-to-late-century emergence was that of MAD magazine, the subversively satirical monthly that showcased a wide variety of incredibly gifted cartoon stylists. Chief among them was the late Don Martin (1931-2000), whose goofy characters earned him a place as perhaps the publication’s most recognizable contributor. The Completely MAD Don Martin serves as weighty testament to Martin’s legacy. This 25-pound, two-volume, slipcased special edition the first of a planned MAD‘s Greatest Artists series gathers together every piece of art Martin published in MAD during his 30 years as a freelancer. Martin’s occasionally gross-out style combined distinctive and very detailed linework, elements of chortling high fantasy and a preponderance of originally conceived sound effects, all of which is captured here. The cartoon reproductions are accompanied throughout by reprints of letters and rough sketches; a series of verbal and illustrated tributes from notable MAD colleagues; and photos of the artist unlike his characters, Martin was a quiet and rather handsome guy. Far Side creator Gary Larson, a spiritual descendant of Martin’s, provides the foreword.

Contemporary with Schulz's mid-to-late-century emergence was that of MAD magazine, the subversively satirical monthly that showcased a wide variety of incredibly gifted cartoon stylists. Chief among them was the late Don Martin (1931-2000), whose goofy characters earned him a place as perhaps the publication's most…
Arts & CultureArt

Calling Charlie Brown

Review by bookpagedev

Who’d have thought that Charles M. Schulz (1922-2000) would be worthy of a major biography? Yet the late creator of the Peanuts comic strip might rightly be considered one of the greatest authors of all time his 50 years of tireless work is engrained deeply into the international consciousness. Schulz and Peanuts, by N.C. Wyeth biographer David Michaelis, is the product of nearly seven years of research and firsthand interviews. Not long after Schulz’s death, Michaelis got busy digging through his extensive archives, then traced the great cartoonist’s life back through his staunch German-American Minnesota roots. Schulz always seemed warm, avuncular and pretty buttoned-down he was one American cartoonist the country got to know at least somewhat via media coverage but Michaelis goes deeper, and with the help of 200 or so cartoons from the dailies, connects the dots between the real Schulz and the minidramas played out among his characters. Schulz wanted to be a cartoonist early on, and, eschewing college, learned his craft through correspondence courses. At the age of 20, he endured the loss of his mother to cancer and served a critical life-changing stint as a World War II Army sergeant before making an indelible mark with his subtle wit and charming drawings. Schulz’s first marriage and other romantic relationships receive extensive dissection here, as does the man’s essential character and psychological quirks. The book occasionally seems bogged down with too much family history, but ultimately this aspect of Michaelis’ approach to his subject helps put the art and the artist into perspective. It’s a rewarding and surprisingly trenchant read and a must-have for Peanuts fans.

Who'd have thought that Charles M. Schulz (1922-2000) would be worthy of a major biography? Yet the late creator of the Peanuts comic strip might rightly be considered one of the greatest authors of all time his 50 years of tireless work is engrained…
PhotographyArts & Culture

Movies we love

Review by bookpagedev

, a cultural icon of a different sort and one of the most beloved stories of our time, is lovingly and thoroughly celebrated in Laurence Maslon’s The Sound of Music Companion. With a heartfelt foreword by Andrew Lloyd Webber (who recently brought the show back to the stage), this captivating, joyful book bursts with history, artwork and mementos, production still photography, song lyrics and stories all devoted to the musical and cinematic productions of the Von Trapp family story.

Maslon starts his tribute at the very beginning, introducing us to the indomitable, irrepressible Maria and her adopted family, and intersperses their saga (from Salzburg to the States) with Oscar Hammerstein’s memorable song lyrics and production shots from both movie and musical versions. The book segues almost seamlessly into a thoughtful and entertaining history of the show’s genesis, from its very first production with Mary Martin, to the movie version with Julie Andrews and all the variant productions since and in between (including the Sound of Music sing-along phenomenon), ending with the recent Lloyd Webber stage revival.

With its history of the rise of the Third Reich, a wealth of behind-the-scenes production anecdotes and a fascinating look at the creative processes of Rodgers and Hammerstein, The Sound of Music Companion is thoughtfully conceived, beautifully written and well-researched a guaranteed candidate for any fan’s shortlist of favorite things.

, a cultural icon of a different sort and one of the most beloved stories of our time, is lovingly and thoroughly celebrated in Laurence Maslon's The Sound of Music Companion. With a heartfelt foreword by Andrew Lloyd Webber (who recently brought the show back…
NonfictionPop CultureHumorArts & Culture

The awesomeness of awkward

Review by Abby Plesser

Picture this: a family, dressed in matching denim, lying on top of one another by the ocean. Or think of two parents sweetly kissing their newborn—except the baby is screaming out in terror. Or imagine a mother and father posed casually for a snapshot with their kids . . . with their pet snake wrapped around all of them. These photographic gems—and many, many more—are chronicled in the hilarious, uncomfortable and yes—awkward—book, Awkward Family Photos. 

Mike Bender and Doug Chernack had no idea what a goldmine they’d struck when they started their website, awkwardfamilyphotos.com, in 2009. They figured they would post some funny pictures from their families and friends’ families, and pass the website around as a joke. Then people started checking out the site by the hundreds, then thousands, then millions—and a phenomenon was born. Lucky for us, Bender and Chernack have created a greatest hits album from their collection of awkward and awesome family photos in Awkward Family Photos. You’ll see some of your favorites from the website, but also dozens of new, ridiculous family snapshots. It’s all here, from holiday cards gone awry to wacky wedding portraits to awful graduation photos and beyond. To make it even funnier, Bender and Chernack have included photo captions, as well as stories from the people in the photos. If you think your family is awkward, you’re probably right, but Awkward Family Photos proves that it could be much, much worse.

Picture this: a family, dressed in matching denim, lying on top of one another by the ocean. Or think of two parents sweetly kissing their newborn—except the baby is screaming out in terror. Or imagine a mother and father posed casually for a snapshot with…

PhotographyArts & Culture

Movies we love

Review by bookpagedev

If you adore Wookiees and droids, long for a lightsaber of your own, or are eager to explore faraway galaxies, then The Star Wars Vault: Thirty Years of Treasures from the Lucasfilm Archives, is your go-to cache of intergalactic goodies. Brought to you by two of George Lucas’ employees, Stephen J. Sansweet and Peter Vilmur, this collection of Star Wars memorabilia and (removable) ephemera is a one-of-a-kind paean to the creative fertility of Lucas and the cast of thousands who contributed to this massive franchise.

The Star Wars Vault includes hundreds of photos and pieces of art; 50 items of memorabilia (notably, reproductions of Lucas’ handwritten scripts); and two CDs featuring cast interviews, radio spots and a song or two from Princess Leia! With this scrapbook to end all scrapbooks, the authors have also framed a mind-bending, exacting prose history of the Star Wars saga, from its early days to the final Episode III; the book is a testament to moviemaking and the complex science of special effects. The imagined world of George Lucas has become a global cultural icon, with characters and dialogue inextricably sunk into our collective psyches. The Star Wars Vault reveals the complete genesis of Luke, Leia, Han and the Dark Lord, and is a must-have for all fans of The Force.

If you adore Wookiees and droids, long for a lightsaber of your own, or are eager to explore faraway galaxies, then The Star Wars Vault: Thirty Years of Treasures from the Lucasfilm Archives, is your go-to cache of intergalactic goodies. Brought to you by two…
PhotographyArts & Culture

Before your eyes

Review by bookpagedev

100 Days in Photographs: Pivotal Events that Changed the World, by Nick Yapp, Douglas Brinkley and Chris Johns, is a powerhouse blend of image and story. Photographs selected from the historic collections of the National Geographic Society and Getty Images show us our world, from 1851 to the present day, with both elevating and awful truth. Photography, says historian Brinkley in the book’s foreword, is a window onto our collective souls and struggles. This book, without a surfeit of unnecessary words, inarguably illustrates our human sufferings, but also our triumphs, curiosities and joys.

Presented in chronological order and accompanied by brief, succinct histories written by London-based journalist Yapp, the photographs reflect a gamut of ground-breaking and mind-boggling events, from the Wright Brothers’ first flight at Kitty Hawk, the fall of Saigon and the tumbling of the Berlin Wall, to a placid portrait of Dolly, the infamous cloned sheep. Photo captions give information about the photographers, their equipment and technique, and historic quotes round out the history behind each photograph.

Many of the images included here are disturbing; they remind of us our most terrible capabilities. But they are, says Brinkley, testimonials to an ever-evolving art form that teaches about ourselves. . . . And all we can do is be grateful for the discovery and recognition.

100 Days in Photographs: Pivotal Events that Changed the World, by Nick Yapp, Douglas Brinkley and Chris Johns, is a powerhouse blend of image and story. Photographs selected from the historic collections of the National Geographic Society and Getty Images show us our world,…
NonfictionMemoirLiteratureArts & Culture

Reading all day

Review by Henry L. Carrigan Jr.

When her sister Anne-Marie died after a brief but debilitating illness, Nina Sankovitch took refuge in her old purple chair, surrounded by stacks of books that both she and her sister loved. Much as Joan Didion launched into her “year of magical thinking” following the death of her husband, Sankovitch launched into a year of magical reading as her own suspension in time between the overwhelming sorrow of her sister’s death and the future that awaited her.

Knowing how easy it would be to lose herself and her grief in the many busy little things that make up everyday life, Sankovitch allowed herself a year not to run, worry, control or make money. As she turned 46 (the age at which her sister died), she and her husband raised a toast to the commencement of her year of reading books—one book every day. “All the books would have been the ones I would have shared with Anne-Marie if I could have,” she writes.

Sankovitch inaugurated a website, ReadAllDay.org, where she reflected daily on the book she had just read. Seeking to bask in the memories of her sister’s life, to fill the void left by her death and to share her highs and lows with other readers, she feasted upon a banquet of books that ranged from Muriel Barbery’s The Elegance of the Hedgehog and W.G. Sebald’s The Emigrants to Ross MacDonald’s The Ferguson Affair and Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight, devouring themes from love and death, to war and peace, to loss and hope.

In Tolstoy and the Purple Chair, her affectionate and inspiring paean to the power of books and reading, Sankovitch gracefully acknowledges that her year of reading was an escape into the healing sanctuary of books, where she learned how to move beyond recuperation to living.

When her sister Anne-Marie died after a brief but debilitating illness, Nina Sankovitch took refuge in her old purple chair, surrounded by stacks of books that both she and her sister loved. Much as Joan Didion launched into her “year of magical thinking” following the…

LiteratureArts & Culture

Behind a childhood classic

Review by Catherine Hollis

Before Harry Potter came along, Charlotte’s Web was the best-selling children’s book in America. Generations of kids found real magic in Zuckerman’s barn, through young Fern’s relationship with Wilbur the pig and Charlotte the spider. Charlotte’s Web set its talking animals alongside realistic lessons about the cycles of life and death in the barnyard, a naturalism that emerged from author E.B. White’s own farm in Maine and his lifelong fascination with animals.

The Story of Charlotte’s Web, Michael Sims’ slice-of-life biography of E.B. White, focuses on those elements that directly contributed to the creation of Charlotte’s Web. The first section of the book is stunning, an almost novelistic recreation of the child Elwyn’s imaginative world. The youngest of seven children, Elwyn was shy and anxious, happiest when rambling alone in Maine’s lake country or watching chicks hatch in a barn. He was equally drawn to reading and writing about the natural world, becoming a published author at age nine with a poem entitled “To a Mouse.” Sims shows us how Elwyn’s childhood reading, from the animal stories of Ernest Thompson Seton to Don Marquis’ comic verses about Archy and Mehitabel, influenced the writer White would become.

Sims’ imaginative re-enactment of pivotal scenes in White’s life is unconventional yet compelling. A wonderful example of this occurs when 26-year-old Andy (as White was known after college) peruses a magazine stand in Grand Central Station in 1925: Sims vividly details the covers of Film Fun and Time magazine before focusing his lens on Andy’s life-changing purchase of the first issue of The New Yorker. The staging of this scene helps Sims build out the literary and cultural contexts in which Andy becomes a professional writer, grounding the drama in solid historical research.

The adult Andy—successful New Yorker writer, married to editor Katharine White, dividing his time between Manhattan and a farm in Maine—is perhaps not so intriguing as the child Elwyn, until he becomes fascinated with orb weaver spiders, spending two years obsessively studying their habits in preparation for the creation of Charlotte A. Calvatica. Sims deftly handles the writing and publication of Charlotte’s Web, building thumbnail portraits of the legendary children’s book editor Ursula Nordstrom and illustrator Garth Williams. But this biography is at its best in the barnyard, illuminating that “sacred space” E.B. White brought to life in his beloved children’s book.

Before Harry Potter came along, Charlotte’s Web was the best-selling children’s book in America. Generations of kids found real magic in Zuckerman’s barn, through young Fern’s relationship with Wilbur the pig and Charlotte the spider. Charlotte’s Web set its talking animals alongside realistic lessons about…

Pop CultureArts & Culture

Frankenstein: A Cultural History

Review by bookpagedev

Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein has been frightening readers for 200 years, and Susan Tyler Hitchcock explores the journey in Frankenstein: A Cultural History. Hitchcock explains the story’s lasting relevance by detailing its evolution from book to big screen (and to comics, costumes, TV shows, tea towels, etc.).

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein has been frightening readers for 200 years, and Susan Tyler Hitchcock explores the journey in Frankenstein: A Cultural History. Hitchcock explains the story's lasting relevance by detailing its evolution from book to big screen (and to comics, costumes, TV shows, tea towels,…
Pop CultureMusicArts & Culture

Songs that say America

Review by Edward Morris

It wasn’t obvious as it was happening, but, as David Browne shows in Fire and Rain, 1970 turned out to be a watershed year in popular music. By this time, the Beatles were not only fractured but fractious toward each other. Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel were spinning in different directions, too, with the former contemplating a solo career and the latter immersed in movie acting. The members of Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young were demonstrating in every way that their harmony was musical, not fraternal. While these superstars were getting the lion’s share of public attention, a mellow voice with a wry wit out of North Carolina was casually moving into the spotlight. Folkish though James Taylor’s sound and songs were, they carried virtually none of the political content or self-righteousness that characterized folkies of the 1960s. His songs were more like easy-listening landscapes of the soul.

Even though the three bands Browne chronicles were twisting apart, the albums they released in 1970—the Beatles’ Let It Be, Simon & Garfunkel’s Bridge Over Troubled Water and CSN&Y’s Déjà vu—became instant classics. The same was true for Taylor’s Sweet Baby James, also delivered in 1970, which featured the song that gives this book its title. During the course of this year, the Ohio National Guard killed four students at Kent State University, Charles Manson went on trial for the “Helter Skelter” murders and the Vietnam War continued to rage.

Proceeding chronologically, Browne alternates between close-ups of studio sessions and personal relationships and wide shots of how these situations affected or were affected by the overall culture. He sprinkles his narrative with fascinating vignettes: Simon teaching a songwriting course at New York University, Nash and Stills sparring over the affections of Rita Coolidge, Ringo Starr recording his first album in Nashville. Wonder of wonders, he makes all these voluminous details, which might have led to factual overload in lesser hands, eminently readable.

Now a contributing editor at Rolling Stone, Browne gleaned much of his information by interviewing primary sources, among them Crosby, Stills, Nash, Taylor, Coolidge, record executive Clive Davis, singers Bonnie Bramlett and Peter Yarrow and such omnipresent sidemen as Russ Kunkel and Leland Sklar. Browne’s engrossing account of this fertile but volatile period sets the standard by which comprehensive musical histories should be judged.

It wasn’t obvious as it was happening, but, as David Browne shows in Fire and Rain, 1970 turned out to be a watershed year in popular music. By this time, the Beatles were not only fractured but fractious toward each other. Paul Simon and Art…

Pop CultureArts & Culture

Oops, I did it again!

Review by bookpagedev

It happens about every 10 words the ums, uhs, you knows the verbal placeholders we use while our minds race ahead of our tongues, the verbal gaffes like substituting interweb for Internet or replacing loofah with falafel (as commentator Bill O’Reilly is rather famously alleged to have done in a telephone call). Armed with a master’s degree in linguistics and a doctorate in English, author Michael Erard lumps a variety of faux pas under the heading of disfluencies in Um. . . Slips, Stumbles, and Verbal Blunders, and What They Mean, which makes them sound more remarkable than most of them really are. Our verbal miscues are plentiful and inevitable, but only occasionally riotous or ruinous. If we’re really lucky, like the notorious Rev. William Spooner, not only will actual blunders (such as exalting God as a shoving leopard ) bring us fame, but invented ones such as a camel passing through the knee of an idol will be ascribed to us, enhancing our renown.

Viennese professor Rudolf Meringer’s famed battles with Sigmund Freud over the cause of Fehlleistung (literally faulty performance, now widely known as Freudian slips ) are documented in detail here, as is the cross-cultural nature of the vocal glitch. In the Wichita tongue, for instance, the word kaakiri, or something, takes the place of uh, and similar verbal tics can be detected even in sign language. From Mrs. Malaprop, whose penchant for garbled speech in the 1775 play The Rivals has given us the catchall word for verbal blunders, to President George W. Bush, whose so-called dubyaspeak has given rise to such howlers as 2004’s This is a historic moment in history, as far as I’m concerned, Erard deftly picks his way through a junkyard of spoken debris to inform, enlighten and entertain in equal measure.

Verbal blunderologists swarm among us like birdwatchers in spring, and we are all unwitting targets for their nets. So be forewarned: Um is a mystery you won’t want to hiss, and if you do, may sod rest your goal.

It happens about every 10 words the ums, uhs, you knows the verbal placeholders we use while our minds race ahead of our tongues, the verbal gaffes like substituting interweb for Internet or replacing loofah with falafel (as commentator Bill O'Reilly is rather famously alleged…

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