The Seasonal Reading Challenge discussion

20.3 - Best Review - Book Concierge's task: Art and Passion

I have always loved art. My parents frequently took my brothers and me to art museums, and my mother loved buying folk art, especially by Mexican or Southwest artists.

Choose ONE of the options below and read a book that is a minimum of 250 pages long.
Required: State which option you chose when you post.

**Note: Books with the genre childrens or kids may not be used for this task.**

OPTION A - Ettore “Ted” DeGrazia (b 14June1909 / d 17Sept1982) was an American impressionist, painter, sculptor, composer, actor, director, designer, architect, jeweler, and lithographer. He is perhaps best known for his colorful images of Native American children of the American Southwest. In 1960, DeGrazia got his big break when UNICEF requested permission to use his image of Los Ninos to produce greeting cards. Many millions were sold world-wide, making DeGrazia the most reproduced artist in the world. My mother loved his work and had several reproductions / prints in her home.

Read a book with a cover that depicts two or more children. Children should be clearly age 12 or younger. Ex:

Required: Post the cover image


OPTION B - Frida Kahlo (b 06July1907 / d 13July1954) was a Mexican painter who is best known for her self-portraits. Kahlo’s life began and ended in Mexico City, in her home known as the Blue House. Her work has been celebrated in Mexico as emblematic of national and indigenous tradition, and by feminists for its uncompromising depiction of the female experience and form.

Read a memoir or autobiography written by a female author. If there is a co-author, the co-author must also be female.


OPTION C - Martin Ramirez (b 30Jan1895 / d 17Feb1963) was a self-taught artist who spent most of his adult life institutionalized in California mental hospitals, diagnosed as a catatonic schizophrenic. He is considered to be one of the 20th century’s self-taught masters. His works display an idiosyncratic iconography that reflect both Mexican folk traditions and 20th century modernization: images of Madonnas, horseback riders, and trains entering or exiting tunnels, undulating fields of concentric lines that describe landscapes, and decorative patterns.

Read a book with a cover image of a Madonna (or mother & child), a horseback rider (on a horse), or a train. If using the mother & child option, the child should be clearly under the age of 12.

Required: Post the cover


OPTION D - Diego Rivera (b 08Dec1886 / d 24Nov1957) was a prominent Mexican painter. His large wall works in fresco helped establish the Mexican Mural Movement in Mexican art. Between 1922 and 1953, Rivera painted murals in Mexico City, Chapingo, Cuernavaca, San Francisco, Detroit and New York City. He was married to fellow Mexican artist Frida Kahlo. I remember my parents taking me to Mexico City to see Rivera’s murals.

Read a book written by an Hispanic author.
Required: If it is not clear from the author’s Goodreads profile that s/he is of Latin-American or Spanish descent, cite the source of your information.

Approved


Option A - 2 or more children on cover


Option B - AUTObiography / memoir by a female
West with the Night / Bossypants / When I Was Puerto Rican / If Life Is a Bowl of Cherries—What Am I Doing in the Pits? (be sure to watch which edition you read ... not all of them meet the page requirements)

Option C - Cover images
Madonna / woman & child -


Train:


Option D - Hispanic author (male OR female)
Octavio Paz / Silvia Moreno-Garcia (be sure it's NOT an anthology, but something by her alone) / Diana Gabaldon

Sorry, NO

Option A
(look like teens)

Option B
Founding Mothers (NOT a memoir/autobiography)
A Room of One's Own (NOT a memoir/autobiography)
The Story of the Lost Child (NOT a memoir/autobiography)

Option C
(cable car NOT a train)

Option D
Future Lovecraft is an anthology with the majority of authors NOT Hisapnic

This thread is now open!

Would this work for Option C (madonna):

One of my goals for December is to read by Octavio Paz. Would that work for Option 4?

Would this work for Option C (mother and child)...the reason I ask is that I'm not sure the woman is actually her mother without reading the book and the title leads me to think that perhaps she is not the biological/legal mother.

Will this work for Option B?

Thank you.

Amy wrote: "Would this work for Option C (madonna):

"

Yes, I can see the mother / child

Paula wrote: "One of my goals for December is to read by Octavio Paz. Would that work for Option 4?"

Yes

Kristen wrote: "Would this work for Option C (mother and child)....."

I'm more concerned with the image than the actual relationship. So YES, this would work as it appears to be a mother and child.

Kim wrote: "Will this work for Option B?

Thank you."

NO - this is not an AUTObiography/memoir

Can I clarify if for Option A and Option C Does it need to be just the children, or just the mother and child. If I have mom , dad, and two children, will that work for either?

Heather(Gibby) wrote: "Can I clarify if for Option A and Option C Does it need to be just the children, or just the mother and child. If I have mom , dad, and two children, will that work for either?"

The images do not need to be alone ... if there are two or more children depicted then it works for Option A ... if there is a mother and child depicted it works for Option C.

NOTE: Children should be "children" NOT teenagers.

Seeking approval for Option C

Wanda wrote: "Seeking approval for Option C"

Looks good.

Would A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf work for option B?

Carla wrote: "Would A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf work for option B?"

Sorry, no. It's not an autobiography/memoir of Woolf's own life, but rather an extended essay based on lectures she delivered at Cambridge University. Great book though, so I hope you find a place for it.

Just checking because her Goodreads author profile seems to say so, but is Future Lovecraft by Silvia Moreno-Garcia alright for this task?

Maya wrote: "Just checking because her Goodreads author profile seems to say so, but is Future Lovecraft by Silvia Moreno-Garcia alright for this task?"

Author is Hispanic so good for Option D .. HOWEVER Future Lovecraft is an anthology and most of the authors are NOT Hispanic, so this book will not work.

Silvia Moreno-Garcia has written some works on her own - like Signal to Noise - which would be fine.

Would this work for option A:

June wrote: "Would this work for option A: "

Sorry, June ... but from the picture they look more like teenagers or even young women. NOT approved for Option A. Hope you can find somewhere else to use it this challenge.

Will this qualify for option 1: . I am not sure if the kids look 12 or younger. There is no page numbers on paperback so I am finding out if the large hardcover edition can be used...?

Hina wrote: "There is no page numbers on paperback so I am finding out if the large hardcover ..."

Hina, I just added page count for this paperback.

Would work for either Option A or B? (I'm looking at the people in the sepia image at the top.)

Bea wrote: "Hina wrote: "There is no page numbers on paperback so I am finding out if the large hardcover ..."

Hina, I just added page count for this paperback."

Thanks Bea! Do you think the kids in the pictures look under 12? I am sometimes very bad at telling age...

Hina wrote: "Will this qualify for option 1: . I am not sure if the kids look 12 or younger. There is no page numbers on paperback so I am finding out if the large hardcover ..."

** Answering for Book Concierge while she's away.**
The boys appear to be younger than teenagers so, yes, this works for option A. Please state in your completed task post that the book was approved in the help thread so DLMRose doesn't have to go through the age-determination process again. ;-)

Kristina Simon wrote: "Hina wrote: "Will this qualify for option 1: . I am not sure if the kids look 12 or younger. There is no page numbers on paperback so I am finding out if the lar..."

Will do Thanks!

Julia wrote: "Would work for either Option A or B? (I'm looking at the people in the sepia image at the top.)"

** Answering for Book Concierge while she's away.**
It won't work for B because it's written by a male author, not a female one. But it'll work for option A since there are 2 children in that top picture.

Sorry, I was thinking Options A or C but mis-typed (mother and child being the two middle figures in the sepia section).

Julia wrote: "Sorry, I was thinking Options A or C but mis-typed (mother and child being the two middle figures in the sepia section)."

Julia ... yes, approved for both options A or C

Will Diana Gabaldon work for Hispanic author? Her Goodreads page states that she has some Mexican heritage.

Cathy wrote: "Will Diana Gabaldon work for Hispanic author? Her Goodreads page states that she has some Mexican heritage."

Yes I will accept Diana Gabaldon whose Goodreads profile includes:
Diana Jean Gabaldon Watkins grew up in Flagstaff, Arizona and is of Mexican-American and English descent.

Happy reading!

For option C, is this enough of a train?

Jukka wrote: "For option C, is this enough of a train?

"

Sorry, that looks more like a cable car (because of the overhead electric lines) than a train. NOT approved.

Even so I'm also not 100% sure that this is a train, I want to mention that in Germany and most of Europe nearly all trains run by electricity and so have all overhead electric lines. The only trains that sometimes still use not electricity are freight trains.

Fandury wrote: "Even so I'm also not 100% sure that this is a train, I want to mention that in Germany and most of Europe nearly all trains run by electricity and so have all overhead electric lines. The only trai..."

Thanks, Fandury. But the artist painted the trains of the American West, which all traveled on traditional rails. And I want to remain true to those images. I should have specified that.

Would If Life Is a Bowl of Cherries, What Am I Doing in the Pits? (mmpb: If Life Is a Bowl of Cherries—What Am I Doing in the Pits? - 256 pages) be okay to use for option B? Since the summary is so vague and memoir isn't shelved hugely (although it's still a main page genre), I'm just looking for confirmation that it is in fact a memoir (or isn't!) :P I'm about 15% into the book already and it seems to be articles/essays on topics (chapter one was honeymoons/the honeymoon phase) and she spends the majority of the time telling stories from her own life.

Is the train on large enough for C?

Kait wrote: "Would If Life Is a Bowl of Cherries, What Am I Doing in the Pits? (mmpb: If Life Is a Bowl of Cherries—What Am I Doing in the Pits? - 256 pages) be okay to use for op..."

Love Erma Bombeck ... while these are mostly essays, she relied heavily on her own life to write these humorous columns. So I'll accept it.

Nicola wrote: "Is the train on large enough for C?"

I can see the train in the center. Accepted.

How about for option B?

Cindie wrote: "How about for option B?"

Sorry, No ... it may be based on her life story, but this is a novel, so does not qualify as autobiography /memoir.

Book Concierge wrote: "Cindie wrote: "How about for option B?"

Sorry, No ... it may be based on her life story, but this is a novel, so does not qualify as autobiography ..."

oops...sorry.

I meant does this work for A?

Cindie wrote: "How about for option A?"

YES .. it does work for Option A!

Book Concierge wrote: "Cindie wrote: "How about for option A?"

YES .. it does work for Option A!"

thanks

For option A:

Cindy wrote: "For option A: "

Yes, these children seem to be under age 12. Approved for Option A.

For Option A, do these children look young enough to qualify?

Lois wrote: "For Option A, do these children look young enough to qualify?
"

Yes, they do.