From the National Book Award-winning author of Just Kids and M Train, a profound, beautifully realized memoir in which dreams and reality are vividly woven into a tapestry of one transformative year.

Following a run of New Year's concerts at San Francisco's legendary Fillmore, Patti Smith finds herself tramping the coast of Santa Cruz, about to embark on a year of solitary wandering. Unfettered by logic or time, she draws us into her private wonderland, with no design yet heeding signs, including a talking sign that looms above her, prodding and sparring like the Cheshire Cat. In February, a surreal lunar year begins, bringing with it unexpected turns, heightened mischief, and inescapable sorrow. In a stranger's words, “Anything is possible: after all, it's the year of the monkey.” For Patti Smith - inveterately curious, always exploring, tracking thoughts, writing the year evolves as one of reckoning with the changes in life's gyre: with loss, aging, and a dramatic shift in the political landscape of America.

Smith melds the Western landscape with her own dreamscape. Taking us from Southern California to the Arizona desert; to a Kentucky farm as the amanuensis of a friend in crisis; to the hospital room of a valued mentor; and by turns to remembered and imagined places - this haunting memoir blends fact and fiction with poetic mastery. The unexpected happens; grief and disillusionment. But as Patti Smith heads toward a new decade in her own life, she offers this balm to the reader: her wisdom, wit, gimlet eye, and above all, a rugged hope of a better world.

Riveting, elegant, often humorous, illustrated by Smith's signature Polaroids, Year of the Monkey is a moving and original work, a touchstone for our turbulent times.

Daniel Meadows is a pioneer of contemporary British documentary practice. His photographs and audio recordings, made over forty-five years, capture the life of England's `great ordinary'. Challenging the status quo by working collaboratively, he has fashioned from his many encounters a nation's story both magical and familiar. This book includes important work from Meadows' ground-breaking projects, drawing on the archives now held at the Bodleian Library. Fiercely independent, Meadows devised many of his creative processes: he ran a free portrait studio in Manchester's Moss Side in 1972, then travelled 10,000 miles making a national portrait from his converted double-decker the Free Photographic Omnibus, a project he revisited a quarter of a century later. At the turn of the millennium he adopted new `kitchen table' technologies to make digital stories: `multimedia sonnets from the people', as he called them. He sometimes returned to those he had photographed, listening for how things were and how they had changed. Through their unique voices he finds a moving and insightful commentary on life in Britain. Then and now. Now and then.

This fascinating all-in-one guide introduces you to the art, history, and culture of photography, and shows you how to get the very best from your own photographs. A comprehensive guide to all things photographic, Photography opens with a gallery of more than 30 of the key figures in photography, from 19th-century pioneers to famous photographers working today. The gallery provides fascinating contrasts between such diverse genres as art photography, reportage, portrait, and wildlife photography. The book then tells the story of photography, from its "garden shed" beginnings to the rise of the "selfie" today. The second half of the book introduces cameras, accessories, and software, explaining what they can do and how to use them, then shows how to take better photographs by mastering the technical aspects of your camera; experimenting with composition, colour and light; and digitally enhancing your photos. Inspirational masterclasses covering all genres of photography - landscape, portraits, wildlife, architecture, art - also provide you with an opportunity to apply your newfound skills in a clear and practical way.

Buite die hekke van Eden bevat dagboekfoto’s wat die bekende Suid-Afrikaanse fotograaf Paul Alberts oor ’n hele aantal jare in verskillende dele van Suid-Afrika geneem het. Die teks by die foto’s het Alberts self tydens sy fotografie-reise geskryf. Woord en beeld lewer kommentaar op sosiale en omgewingstoestande in die land. Met hierdie foto’s vang Alberts iets vas van die wese van lyding, verval en swaarkry, maar ook van die krag van die menslike gees. Die foto’s is by geleentheid van Alberts se 60ste verjaardag in die Oliewenhout-kunsmuseum in Bloemfontein uitgestal, saam met ’n aantal kwatryne wat Hennie Aucamp spesiaal vir die foto’s geskryf het. Buite die hekke van Eden is ’n publikasie met ’n besondere kultuurhistoriese en artistieke waarde.

At the northern entrance to Prince Albert in the Great Karoo lies Northend, a neighbourhood home to a special group of people. They have a very special way of communicating with others through their stories, which indicate an inherent joy of life. However, judging by their environment and circumstances, it is clear that they have experienced many hardship, and for an outsider it is an enriching experience to meet them.

Every picture in Slow Down Look Again tells a story and is supported by explanatory text. These enable the reader to gain insight into the past and the present of this unique neighbourhood and its residents.

The joy and sorrows of the residents of Northend - as well as their scant earthly possessions - are illustrated through Louis Botha?s excellent choice of photographic backgrounds. And yet the absolute neatness of their homes illustrates a certain pride - poverty without dilapidation. The intimacy of the photographs ultimately leaves the reader enriched. We become witnesses not only to the extraordinary character of a close-knit community, but also of its trusting relationship with the person whom they have allowed to tell their story. Louis Botha was born in Bloemfontein in 1955 and grew up on a small-holding north-east of Pretoria. After school he studied finance and followed a career in the Financial Services Industry. At the age of 40, and encouraged by his wife he pursued his hobby more seriously. He?s held several exhibitions and lives in Prince Albert.

As well as looking at the training environment Kandhola focuses on three established figures in boxing: Julius Francis, a four-times British Heavyweight and Commonwealth champion, who Kandhola first photographed in 2000 just before his fight with Mike Tyson; Robert McCracken, who won the British Light Middleweight title in 1994 and the Commonwealth title in 1995 - currently McCracken is Performance Director for the British Olympic team, and personal coach to Carl Froch; and Howard 'Clakka' Clarke who fought at Madison Square Garden for the IBF Light Middleweight Title - he lost, after which his career took a significant nose-dive with him winning only one fight out of his next seventy. He retired in 2007.

As a small boy, John Comino-James stood in school cap and Sunday suit to have his snapshot taken under flags put up for Queen Elizabeth's Coronation. The resultant photograph resonates with an England long since disappeared, yet still fertile in the imagination. That sense of how that England has changed is the focus in John Comino-James' new book as he explores our everyday landscape of sign and symbol, from roadside verge to traffic-free shopping centre, to high-rise cityscapes. Art is in action ahead, and with a friendly corporate Hello, we are offered No Deposit Deals on Half Price Dreams. We are thanked for shopping, and offered free cash withdrawals. A Money Shop is at hand and woodlands are for sale - just visit the website. If we drop litter CCTV may catch us, and we are warned that if we leave something valuable on show in our car we can expect it to be stolen. Reminders of the valour and necessity, the sacrifices, the folly and the tragedy of war are never far away. Earthquakes may strike, stores may close but we can still buy artisan ice-cream. But if opportunity is the moment you have been looking for, where is salvation to be found if not in moments of direct relationship with others?

On the morning of July 30, 1883, President Chester A. Arthur embarked on a trip of historic proportions. His destination was Yellowstone National Park, established by an act of Congress only eleven years earlier. No sitting president had ever traveled this far west. Arthur's host and primary guide would be Philip H. Sheridan, the famed Union general. Also slated to join the expedition was a young photographer, Frank Jay Haynes. This elegant--and fascinating--book showcases Haynes's remarkable photographic album from their six-week journey.

A premier nineteenth-century landscape photographer, F. Jay Haynes, as he was known professionally, originally compiled the leather-bound album as a commemorative piece. As only six copies are known to exist, it has rarely been seen. The album's 104 images are accompanied by captions written by General Sheridan's brother, Colonel Michael V. Sheridan, who wrote daily dispatches that were distributed by the Associated Press.

In his informative introduction, historian Frank H. Goodyear III provides background about the excursion and explains the historic and aesthetic significance of Haynes's photographs. He then re-creates Arthur's journey by reintroducing Haynes's stunning images--along with Sheridan's original captions--including views of the Tetons and other landmarks; portraits of President Arthur, General Sheridan, and fellow travelers engaged in activities along the route; and images of the Shoshone and Arapaho leaders who gathered to greet the visiting party.

Published on the occasion of the reopening of the Haynes Photography Shop in Yellowstone, "A President in Yellowstone" offers a unique entry into the park's storied past.

The remarkable photographs in Peoples of the Plateau capture the lives of Pacific Northwest Indians at the turn of the twentieth century--and at a turning point in their own history. This first major examination of photographer Lee Moorhouse and his work is lavishly illustrated with 104 b&w photographs.

Around 1pm, every day of the week, nearly 600 bingo halls across the UK open their doors to thousands of loyal customers. But, although they can be found on almost every British high street, surprisingly few people ever see what goes on inside. In Bingo & Social Club, photographer Michael Hess opens up this world to a new audience. Behind the often-crumbling exteriors, he finds vibrant places full of strong characters, quirky details and more than a hint of nostalgia. In his own words: I want people to feel that they've spent a night at the bingo - to sense what it feels like to be there.A" Michael explains how the project started. I played bingo one night in 2005, just out of curiosity about what went on inside the big old converted cinema near my house. I was instantly fascinated by the characters. And so the next time I visited, I took my camera. 4 years and more than 60 bingo halls later I was ready to make Bingo & Social Club.A" Michael Hess and Maxine Gallagher spent many nights in the clubs, playing bingo, chatting with the managers and customers, and collecting stories from the people they met. They wanted to find out who these people really were. Bingo halls are not just about gambling; they're about human beings. They really do act as social hubs for many communities.A" Jack, the manager of a bingo club in Newcastle, forms the backbone of the book. He's quite a character - tough and yet extremely dignified - and I knew straight away he could add the extra dimension I was looking for. I've always been inspired by classic movies, and he suited the enigmatic lead role perfectly.A"

'Rough Beauty' is a powerful and moving insight into the struggle of the community of Vidor, Texas, against poverty and its past links to the Ku Klux Klan.

HAVANA: Intimations of Departure is John Comino-James' third book of photographs relating to his experience of that city, first visited in 2002 and many times since. Yet the city still surprises; he writes: Just when I think I know parts of the city well, I catch myself walking in streets made unfamiliar by my photographs.' Arranged in six sequences, the book contemplates the visual experiences and emotional connections the photographer might lose were he unable to walk through its streets again. We imagine moments in the history of buildings, find ourselves led towards and almost overwhelmed by the energy of the street, and observe moments of individual preoccupation and solitude. In the final section, through text and colour, he responds to the blandishments of a tourist industry which all too often proposes that 'Cuba is on the verge of change - now is the perfect time to visit before its distinctive character is altered forever', countering the proposition that the Havana landscape simply presents an opportunity 'for great dramatic photos for competitions and portfolios', pointing to a wider culture of art and politics beyond the Che Guevara T-shirts and other souvenirs.

Recognised as one of the UK's most important photographers of the last forty years, Brian Griffin grew up near Birmingham amongst the factories of the Black Country. His parents were factory workers and from birth Griffin seemed set to follow in their footsteps. And so, on leaving school at the age 16, he began working in a factory, just like everyone else around him. A year later he moved to British Steel working as a trainee pipework engineering estimator in a job that involved costing systems for the nuclear power stations that were then being built. He remained there four years before escaping the tedium of the office by enrolling to study photography at Manchester College of Art. Griffin has exhibited and published widely. In 1989 he had a one-man show at the National Portrait Gallery, London. The same year The Guardian newspaper selected him as 'The Photographer of the Decade' and LIFE magazine used his photograph 'A Broken Frame' as the covershot for their feature 'Greatest Photographs of the Eighties'. During the 1990s Brian Griffin retired from photography and focused on directing advertising, pop videos and short films. He returned to photography in 2001, reestablishing himself once again at the pinacle of British Photography.

William Eggleston once asked Harvey Benge - What are you doing these days? Photographing the urban social landscape, said Benge. Don't talk bullshit; what are you doing? Eggleston insisted. Making strange pictures in cities, replied Benge. However you look at them, Harvey Benge's photographs are mostly urban and generally strange. His work is mysterious; nothing is solid. The pictures capture contrasts and conflicts which leave you wondering what has just happened and what might happen next. He gives voice to the mundane and overlooked. His open-ended photographic sequences record small moments of everyday life that flash past with tension and ambiguity: an urban dream on the edge of reality where figures retreat, seats are empty, phones don't work. Any and every interpretation is a valid interpretation. What is going on? You decide. With photographs made in Paris, London, New York and Rome, this new intensely personal, some might say autobiographical book, is enigmatically entitled 'Some Things You Should Have Told Me'. It is a remorseless meditation on loss and misadventure, pain and impermanence, the inevitability of change. Questions are asked; there are no answers.