Memoir | Big Bearded Bookseller

Sally Mann. Penguin Books, (288p) ISBN: 9780241774540. Memoir, read 10/05/25, eBook ★★★★☆

Art Work- On the Creative Life

I’ve got to admit I have ‘Hold Still’ by Sally Mann on the shelf waiting to be read but this came up on Netgalley and I thought I may as well give this a go first.

Though this is a craft book the craft is explained through memoir and in the most loose of senses. It looks at different aspects of what it takes to be a photographer and then goes down a rabbit hole of experience to show this strength.

Each of the section was a rambling journey through her life that led her to the conclusions on her art that sometimes had very little to do with art itself but for me emphasised that art and life are not two separate spheres but are interlocked and refelct each other.

I was gobsmacked by the trailer incident…

If you are reading this for some technical help or real insight to practice this may not be for you but if you are willing to synthesise the lessons here with the overarching theme of the chapter you can at least get a look at how Sally Mann works.

She has an interesting writing style that does keep you hooked all the way through and the reflections are always edifying.

I really enjoyed the inserts and type-written extra to her friends and families, I also enjoyed how she held little reverence for her own work often penning off notes on the back of ‘failed’ prints.

Overall well worth a read, but more a memoir than a manual so know what you’re going to get.

I received this from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Toby Litt. Galley Beggar Press. (260p) ISBN: 9781910296899. Memoir, read 18/06/18, Paperback ★★★★☆

Wrestliana

Wrestliana is a complicated book, on the surface it is a biography of Toby Litt’s great-great-grandfather William Litt, but it is also an exploration of his relationship with his own father, his sons, and representations of masculinity.

I was lucky enough to receive this from Galley Beggar Press to read and I really appreciate the chance as Toby’s writing is clear and impelling.

William Litt was a champion Cumberland and Westmoreland Wrestling athlete and writer and this book follows his life around the wrestling circuit and further abroad.

It is the joining of these two modern day extremes, ‘Jock’ and ‘Nerd’ that Toby explores, both in William’s life and his own.

Positing that William’s era was possibly the beginning of separation of body and mind as distinct social personas, body and mind was commonly combined. But with the rise of educational specialism and professional sports they became irrevocably sundered.

A really great read written with understanding and passion.

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Category Archives: Memoir

Art Work: On the Creative Life

Wrestliana