This week in the Brainstorm we are taking a look behind the viewfinder with biographies of noteworthy and groundbreaking photographers.
Dorothea’s Eyes: Dorothea Lange Photographs the Truth by Barb Rosenstock, ill. by Gérard DuBois
A picture book biography of photographer Dorothea Lange, who overcame disabilities suffered because of polio, defied convention by becoming a photographer even though she was a woman, and stepped outside the studio to photograph the lonely and forgotten during the Great Depression.
Target Readers:
Social Justice Biography Fans, Overcomer Biography Fans, Photography Fans, Lower Grade Nonfiction Readers, Picture Book Readers
Eyes on the World: Robert Capa, Gerda Taro, and the Invention of Modern Photo Journalism by Marc Aronson & Marina Budhos
In the mid 1930s, two young adult Jewish refugees met in Paris, France, André Friedmann and Gerta Pohorylle. André was trying to make a living as a photographer, one of the few jobs open to refugees in Paris. Gerta managed to land a job with a photography clearing house that sells photos to publications. As the two fell in love and started trying to work together to make ends meet, Gerta decided they should remake themselves. With the growing anti-Semitism in Europe, Gerta changes their names to something less Jewish-sounding, Robert Capa and Gerda Taro. Robert starts teaching Gerda how to take photos as well, and the two get an assignment photographing the civil war breaking out in Spain. They are two of the first photographers to use portable and fast photography to capture war photos. At the same time, publications are starting to use photos in new ways. They are using the newer, more lively photos in ways that will sway readers hearts and minds. So this is a story of two refugees trying to survive in a Europe that increasingly seems to be a hostile place for Jews. They are two photographers doing things and photographing things no one has seen before. So it is also the story of how modern photojournalism developed during this time period, largely using photos by Capa and Taro. And it is also the story of the Spanish Civil War and the convoluted mess of politics that was, and how Capa and Taro got wrapped up in that.
Target Readers:
Photography Fans, Refugee Biography Fans, Spanish Civil War History Buffs, Photojournalism History Buffs, Engaging Nonfiction Fans, Young Adult & Adult Readers
Gordon Parks: How the Photographer Captured Black and White America by Carole Boston Weatherford, ill. by Jamey Christoph
A picture book biography of photographer Gordon Parks who used his art to work to fight for civil rights.
Target Readers:
People of Color Bio Fans, Photography Fans, Civil Rights Workers Bio Fans, Lower Grade Readers, Picture Book Readers
Snowflake Bentley by Jacqueline Briggs Martin, ill. by Mary Azarian
A picture book biography of W.A. Bentley, an amateur in both photography and science who figured out how to photograph snowflakes and discovered that they are all different.
Target Readers:
Photography Fans, Snow Fans, Self-Made Men Bio Fans, Award Winner Fans, Lower Grade Readers, Picture Book Readers
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