Explorations by 12 native American artists and writers into the images that have our ideas of Indianness, and the complex relationship of photography to identity.

We have all directed our gaze into the sky, enjoying the peace and solitude of nature, anticipating to see the shape of something in the clouds. Cheryl Simpson started seeing angels more than 20 years ago and has been recording their images ever since. She feels that if it looks like an angel it more than likely is one, waiting to see who will notice them hovering above. Not long after she started collecting these photos she was drawn to automatic writing, a method of asking a question of ones' angels, guides, or God and receiving an answer. Often, not having a particular question in mind, she would just ask what they had to say. The messages were always uplifting and imparted pertinent angelic wisdom. Angels Overhead is a collection of photographs of some of these angel formations, and several of the angels' messages and poems. They show themselves to make us aware of their presence, to affirm we are always loved, protected and guided. We only have to ask for what we need and be patient for our wish to be answered in whatever form our Creator has chosen to deliver it, on the wings of angels.

We tend to think of icons as simple, graphic, stone or wooden objects without much depth or life, left overs from bygone eras. But Bruce Irving, former producer of the popular PBS show This Old House, will have none of that. In a collection of short essays, Irving taps into our collective consciousness by extolling the comforting sense of place we associate with such common and not-so-common New England sights as stone walls, village greens, lobster boats, classic ski runs, and garden cemeteries, to name but a few symbols of enduring importance that are also still full of life and character. Curl up in your favorite chair, relax, and take a tour of our common heritage or take this insightful cultural guide with you as you travel New England s highways and byways. It s sure to shed new light on the old stalwart landscape features you see every day.

For every cat that hisses and stares at you, there is a happy cat somewhere in the world that would love to receive your attention. A celebration of joyful and jubilant felines, this book is especially crafted for all the cat lovers out there who are desperate to have a puss that loves them back.

In a world in which many photographers seek to avoid definition, Roger Ballen's photographs define themselves in their defiance of classification and genre: his world stands out as one of a kind. The black-and-white images featured in Asylum of the Birds were created exclusively within the confines of a house in a Johannesburg suburb, the location of which remains a guarded secret. The inhabitants of the house, both human and animal - including, most notably, the ever-present birds - are the cast of Ballen's world, performers amidst the theatrical interiors that they create and he orchestrates. The resulting images exist in a space between painting, drawing, installation and photography. They are timeless, psychologically powerful and masterfully composed.