Much Loved

by Mark Nixon

Award-winning photographer Mark Nixon has created a trove of quirky and nostalgic portraits of teddy bears and other stuffed animals that have been lovingly abused after years of play. MuchLoved collects 60 of these images along with their accompanying background tales. An exhibit in the photographer’s studio led to a small sensation on the Internet when a few of the pictures circulated unofficially on scores of blogs and on many legitimate news sites. Viewers have been intrigued by the funny, bittersweet images and their ironic juxtaposition of childhood innocence and aged, loving wear and tear.  When you see these teddy bears and bunnies with missing noses and undone stuffing, you can’t help but think back to childhood and its earliest companions who asked for nothing and gave a lot back.

Praise for Much Loved:

“Much Loved is impossibly endearing in its entirety.” —Brain Pickings

Genres: Nonfiction, Photography, Art, Art and Photography, Animals, Coffee Table Books, Memoir

128 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2013

Reviews

[karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

i will never tire of books that show photos of much-loved stuffed animal companions. i have already read Chewed and Dirty Wow Wow and Other Love Stories: A Tribute to the Threadbare Companions of Childhood (and i still need to get my hands on Dirty Bow Wow). there is something so charming about these pictures, and reading the accompanying text about how long these faithful, damaged friends have been with their keepers is pretty heart-melting, even for me.

i mean, don't get me wrong - some of them are complete nightmare horrorshows:







this one claims to be only 10 years old. that is one kid who needs to learn how to hug more gently.



but some seem to have made it through pretty well



and some manage to exude personality despite losing most of their features and bits and pieces







and this one lives with bono:



me, i have a rabbit



he has been through a lot with me over the years - moved to three of the five boroughs, carried through the filthy streets of manhattan, toured europe and canada and many different states. his ears have been sewn back on many times, and all his pink bits have faded, his nose has been kissed down to the plastic underneath the thread, but he is my most favorite friend, and i will never grow out of him.

sometimes we nap



sometimes we wrestle



sometimes we fly



and because of the overwhelmingly bear-centric nature of this book (most of which are named "ted" or "teddy"), this is what i propose for the paperback release of the book:



boom!

because my bunny needs some exposure, and he's still a little pissed off at this impostor:



come to my blog!

[Kelly (and the Book Boar) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Find all of my reviews at: http://52bookminimum.blogspot.com/

Thanks to Carmen this little book was brought to my attention. She didn’t rate it so high because she is a horrible horrible person. BWAHAHAHAHA! Just kidding. It definitely takes a special kind of weirdo to want to immediately battle an ice storm and run to Barnes & Noble in order to obtain a copy of this overpriced little gem . . . And that special little weirdo just happens to be named Kelly : )

What better accompaniment to my menagerie of death than a coffee table book filled with imagery of well-loved zombie pets?

Like Zombie Giraffe . . .



Or Zombie Teddy Bear . . .



Or Zombie BunnehCarrotTopNightmareInducingHybrid . . .



DELIGHTFUL!

EDIT: After forcing sharing this book on with my children I was reminded of a most horrific Big Bird that belonged to my husband back in the Paleozoic Era which was presented to my youngest several years back by his grandmother. Per the comments below, the poor child was traumatized enough that he still remembers said Zombie Bird. Unfortunately, I was unable to locate him. I assume he's currently hiding in our ventilation system with the zombie hamster biding his time until he decides to murder us in our sleep. I was, however, able to find my oldest son's beloved green dog . . .



who spent years being carted around wherever we went. Look at those stains! God I hope no one ever runs a blacklight over him. He's probably covered in urine and fecal matter : (

As for me? I'm sticking with a different type of “stuffed” animal. Isn’t that right, Pauly?

[Carmen · Rating 2 out of 5]

A book of photographs of well-loved childhood stuffed animals. Most are filthy, discolored, and held together by mere threads. These photographs are accompanied by little anecdotes about how the child (now adult) got the toy and perhaps a story about how it was once lost in the park or something.

Of course, most people have a childhood "love object" like a baby blanket or a teddy bear or a doll which was of utmost importance to them in childhood. While I understand this, it in no way motivates me to stare at other people's beloved toys for 6 hours. I simply don't care. I don't care.

2 stars because I appreciate the idea and where Nixon is coming from with this, but only 2 stars because I don't give a care.

[Natalya Misyuk · Rating 5 out of 5]

Мене давно і сильно захоплює ідея цієї книжки, тому хочу розповісти про неї. Про те, яка вона проста і несподівано філософська.

Фактично, книжка складається з професійно сфотографованих іграшкових звірят (переважно ведмедиків), яких хтось колись дуже-дуже любив. Знаєте, як буває: дитина вибирає іграшку, яку усюди тягає із собою. Це зворушливо. У мене у дитинстві були такі “друзі”, та й, мабуть, майже у всіх були.

«Перехідний об'єкт» — так психологи називають іграшку, яка допомагає дітям долати тривогу дорослішання і розлуки з мамою. Тобто, спочатку малеча чіпляється за маму, потім поступово усвідомлює окремість себе від неї і чіпляється за умовного ведмедика (плюшеву собачку, зайця, пластиковий бульдозер тощо), а згодом ̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶з̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶а̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶ ̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶я̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶к̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶̶е̶с̶ь̶ ̶н̶а̶р̶и̶ц̶и̶с̶и̶ч̶н̶е̶ ̶г̶і̶м̶н̶о̶ ̶ розуміє, що можна не чіплятися взагалі — і це ок.

Всі іграшки на світлинах дуже-дуже потягані. Витерті, брудні, з відірваними вухами і лапами… Кожна фотографія супроводжується короткою історією. До речі, дуже складно написати такі мініатюри, але тут автору це пречудово вдалося. Також з книжки я дізналася про існування «клініки для іграшкових ведмедиків». Насправді, йдеться про компанію, яка надає послуги з реставрації іграшок, — дуже мила бізнес-ідея.

І потім несподіваний поворот. Автор підводить нас до питання: чому ми руйнуємо тих, кого любимо?

Ми вибираємо об’єкт, який нам дуже подобається, і починаємо його (або її) обіймати, гладити, усюди брати із собою. Ніби й почесно, але з кожною такою інтеракцією об’єкт спочатку непомітно, а потім вже дуже очевидно пошкоджується, знищується… Закінчується викиданням на смітник. Лише у поодиноких випадках ці іграшки потрапляють на реставрацію, зберігаються, передаються наступним поколінням…

Але переважно тих, кого ми колись любили, ми доводимо до ручки і потім позбуваємося як непотребу.

Є над чим подумати.

[C.E. G · Rating 4 out of 5]

Portraits of people's childhood stuffed animals with an accompanying background story. Some of them are amazingly creepy.



I'm kind of sad I don't have a creepy keepsake of childhood like this leftover. I was especially amused by the people who were 40+ and married yet still slept with theirs every night - several of whom confessed to never having washed theirs.

[Meagan · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you were to just flip through this book, only looking at the pictures, you'd probably end up a little creeped out. As a group, these stuffed toys are threadbare, missing limbs, missing eyes, stained, matted, and misshapen. If you stumbled into an old room in an old house and found these teddies staring you down, you'd start looking for a place to hide from the inevitable serial killer who collected them.

But happily, they are not a group with one owner and you don't have to rely on the photos alone for their stories. Instead, you get to find out how old they are, and some little anecdote. How the bear was lost, or nearly lost, and recovered. How repairs were made. How they came along when their owners left home, or how they comforted the owners' loved ones when the owner was lost.

It's a nice collection, and inspires some serious nostalgia. (Mine is named George. He's a sock monkey, and lives in my room on top of my bureau.)

[Maria Casey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would definitely recommend this book; good photography and great stories.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

There is nothing bad to say about this book except I wish it was 900 pages long.

[LynnDee (LynnDee's Library) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute. Makes me wonder where my old stuffed animals ended up...

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

For months I had seen Mark Nixon’s teddy bear photos online, so when I saw the book which collects his work on display at the library, I snapped it up.

Most of the teddy bears and other stuffed animals depicted herein show the signs of wear and tear, of years of exposure to dirt, food, slobber, kisses, tears, dreams, fears, secrets, crushing, chewing, dragging, pulling, ripping, squeezing, embracing, and loving. Some have been repaired, while others have been torn to ribbons and tatters. Many seem to carry in their glass or plastic eyes the appearance of a deep empathy and sense of knowing.

Each photo comes with the animal’s name and measurements, the owner’s name, and a description, running from a few lines to several paragraphs, telling how the animal came into the owner’s life, his adventures, and his current situation. Quite a few of these animals have traveled the world, been closely associated with a person now dead, or got lost, only to be rediscovered by someone’s heroic efforts.

It’s impossible to slowly make your way through this book, its photos and stories, and not be reminded of your own childhood, its up and downs, and the fuzzy friends, either long lost or still preserved, who helped you through that time.

[Melody · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow, what an evocative, delightful book. Some of the photos were breathtakingly delightful, some brought tears to my eyes, and some... well, some I could almost SMELL. A wonderful project, full of all sorts of people's much loved childhood stuffed friends. I loved seeing how different families coped with the universal problem of leaking stuffing! Highly recommended, if you ever loved a teddy bear. Or, in my case, cat.

[Josef Ploski · Rating 5 out of 5]

My bunny's name was Berrington and I intend to be buried with him someday.

[Kirsten Reay · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a wonderful book. I loved the stories of all of the "old friends" that were shared. Makes me remember my "old friend" Taddy that I lost a few years ago, and what s/he went through with me since I was 7. Taddy had a gender crisis, sometimes I'd make her/him wear dresses, other times s/he'd be wearing a tie.

I know in my heart that it was time for Taddy to move on and help out some other little boy or girl as s/he had helped and been there for me.

[Lesley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely. I would like to contribute my decade old snowman, Frosty, given to me by my sister on a visit from college when I lost my handy travel pillow. Frosty travelled the world with me, always providing a soft place to rest my head. He is elderly and threadbare now and for his sake he got to retire a number of years ago and he enjoys hanging out with the cats and watching fishing programs.

[Alana · Rating 5 out of 5]

if you've ever had a stuffed animal you couldn't live without, or even if you didn't this book is absolutely amazing. if you have an old friend and this book will make you want to seek them out just to see how their doing(unless they're sitting next to you).
this book had pitures of a wide range of childrens and adults well loved stuffed animals as well as their heartwarming stories. there were a few animals that had been very loved. one that caught my eye was a giraffe, i believe jeffy, was so loved and i mean loved to the point he was almost all strings, a head, and new red sweater who was just less than ten years old. another was a bear over a hundred years old who still still a full bear. addtionally, there were others who had been fixed up or 'hospitalized' and given a new lease on life. each had their own unique story or tale of how much they had been loved and ment to their owners.
memories will be stirred and tears maybe shed but well worth it! i hope this book will eventually have an 'even more much loved' title in the future. would love a pairing with the doll and bear hospital to hear stories and see the before/after pictures for some of their 'patients'.


p.s. i'm off to say hi to pj the sightless raccoon (his big tummy made a most comfortable pillow), and starbright who could not be left alone so grandma and grandpa had to watch him while i was away on vacation.

[Jan Polep · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hard book to read as some of these toys, who are best friends, are seriously loved so much that there isn't much left. What I wouldn't give to find Jocko the Clown, who was with me through many a thumb sucking night and was even professionally photographed (with me and my thumb). At least I have Bear and might offer to let Nixon photo him. For those of you from NIU's North Neptune, he was the guy who was hung in effigy from the clock in the hall and lived to tell the story...and he never held a grudge.

[Kirsti · Rating 4 out of 5]

Appealing without being sappy. This is a collection of beautifully photographed children's toys with a short note about each one. Some are so well loved that they are barely recognizable as stuffed animals. Others have been repaired or reupholstered--some skillfully, some not. And one has what its owner calls "teddy leprosy."

I hope the photographer publishes a sequel with toys from different countries--most of these are from Ireland.

[Clare · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was expecting a heartfelt homage to childhood's stuffed animal friends. The very short stories about these beloved creatures were sweet and endearing, but the photos, for the most part, were enough to give someone nightmares. A few of the toys featured were completely unidentifiable as any sort of animal. Perhaps I am not as sentimental as I thought, but no loving memories could get me to hold on to something that clearly had passed its prime, and its recognizability, years ago.

[April Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I originally picked up the book because I still have Teddy from my first christmas and he looked like he could fit right in with the rest of these stuffed of love. It's good to know I'm not the only one crazy enough to keep a hold of a falling apart animal. The stories are so heart warming that I'm constantly picking the book back up to read a little bit more.

[Cindy Kleback · Rating 4 out of 5]

Everyone had a stuffed animal as a child that was truly their first best friend. This book pays homage to these precious pals with photos and accompanying descriptions/back stories. Looking at these photos brought back fond memories of my beloved fluffy friends.

[Gail · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book. I was immediately drawn to it by the image on its cover, and the pages were filled with similarly touching photos. I thought it was a great project to document these well-loved stuffed animals, and the stories from their people were terrific.

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute and quick, this would make a good coffee table book. Might make you hold your own stuffed animals a little tighter.

[Kellie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book made me happy and sad at the same time. It is really wonderful to see how very "much loved" these special friends are, some so much so that they are falling apart and almost unrecognizable (and a couple were a little scary). I have a couple of "much loveds" myself, and look forward to the day when I can unpack them.

[Kristin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful images of well-loved stuffed animals, accompanied by stories written by their companions. Makes me want to take a picture of my mostly bald and smothered 30+year-old bear, Brownie. In fact, this has inspired me to buy my kid their very own bear.

[Laura Conrad · Rating 5 out of 5]

Each story is endearing and the photos gave me many giggles. The state of these very loved animal is just tickling.

[Pip · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is very special, cataloguing many adored bears, bunnies and other stuffed best friends, I can relate to many of the stories.

My favourite stuffed animal of all was always my Thumper (actual stuffed rabbit from Disney's Bambi) and I wore the hair on his nose into matted fur through years of snuggling and kissing and tears.

I had another bear, I never really gave him a name, he was scratchy and brown and smiled. My mum used him years later for stuffing while making something else, and I think I may have allowed it in my phase of "I'm a teenager i don't need him any more" and I have never forgiven myself. He is still here, though he has no feeling in his legs now, either through the loss of his stuffing or the following amateur surgery I performed to save him.

But the one thing I loved most of all were two big identical pillows my mum made me, made of silky material with thick pink frills edging them, the design was smiling teddies on a pale blue background, and since early childhood I have been very touch-oriented - I'd grasp a handful of the silky fabric in my right hand and rub it over my face, my cheeks mostly and would suck my thumb at the same time - I asked my mum what had happened to them and she said they were gone, that I had loved them so much there was nothing left of them. I remember after they were gone I'd substitute a bedsheet for comfort.

I still have Thumper and my brown Ted, as well as others I had as a kid, and I've loved all of them. This book means a lot to me. Five stars.

edit: 26th February 2016

today we emptied out the closet in my younger sister's room and my older sister found my pink elephant I had as a baby. he is fluffy and still soft, chubby and with his little red tongue poking out. I think it's suppose to be his mouth but the little circle of red felt always looks like a tiny poking tongue. He has a jingler inside him that still works and I snuggled him for ages after he was found. I missed him and wondered where he'd gone :') The sound of his low jingle is one of the few sounds that makes me feel safe.

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

When everything was unknown, they were there.
Where anything could happen, they were there.
These repositories of hugs, of fears, of hopes, of tears, of snots and smears.
Alone at night, they were the comforters, when monsters lurked in darkened corners, when raised voices muffled through floors and walls.
These silent witnesses, these constant companions, defenders of innocence.
Their touch, yes, but their smell, that instantly calming, all embalming musk, unique to each, soothing and smoothing the journey from consciousness to un, from purity to im, from infancy to adult-terre.
Sworn to secrecy, unconditionally there, unjudgementally fair and almost always a bear.

This is Brownie, he's my best friend. We first met in the hospital when we were born, and have been inseparable ever since. There are no stories of Brownie being lost, because Brownie does not get lost. When we travel, he goes in my carry-on. On road trips, he rides shotgun. And the rest of the time, he's snuggled in bed, napping. I am not ashamed to say that at nearly 33 years old, I need this bear to sleep, and have driven halfway across the city to retrieve him when he is elsewhere at bedtime. Best friends have to stick together.

[Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Much Loved is a book of photographs by Mark Nixon of toys - mostly teddy bears - loved to bits by their owners. It's very touching, as some of the bears are quite old - one is 102! Each photo is accompanied by a bit of text from the owner. The book made me think fondly of my own teddy bear, Lemon, who I received when I was four. I was allergic to the dye in his fur and had a terrible rash at first, but once the scent of the dye wore off Lemon and I were great friends.

If you had a teddy or other toy you loved to bits, you may find yourself getting a bit nostalgic. Definitely recommended for those with a fondness for teddy bears and who understand the special relationship a child has with a beloved toy.

[Gail · Rating 4 out of 5]

This charming book is a quick but fun read. Each 2-page spread features a photograph of a "much loved" stuffed animal, usually a teddy bear, and comments from its owner or, in the case of young children, the child's parent. A number of the toys are quite old (at least several decades) and many of them are kind of "ratty-looking," as befitting toys which were cuddled, petted, sucked on, chewed, and/or dragged around for years. Anyone who has had such a toy, or wanted one, will probably enjoy this book.

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book! It is filled with the most amazing and beloved stuffed creatures that have provided comfort throughout childhood and beyond. The oldest is 104 years old and was past from one generation to another. My own bear is now 48 years old. I knitted 'Pinky' (finally named by one of my children) a pair of pink pants & a cardigan when I was in my twenties. She lives in a drawer most of the time and is rediscovered at intervals. I may have to buy this book as I enjoyed it so much :)