This Is Dalí

Gr 10 Up—Ingram's eye-grabbing graphic-novel profiles convey each artist's life story and particular panache with a combo of witty narrative, vivacious illustrations, reproductions of pivotal artworks, and the occasional photo. The book design is superb: each volume features a pen-and-ink portrait of its subject on the front cover and a personal quote that imparts each man's essence on the back cover. Biographical highlights and astute and accessible discussions of artworks are woven into a tapestry of historical events, contemporary cultural trends, and art history context. Dalí introduces the Spanish artist "known for his lavish lifestyle, his gravity-defying moustache and his bizarre art." A self-promoting megalomaniac, he made (and spent) millions and led an existence as surrealistic as his artistic oeuvre. Pollock strives to separate the artist's career from his famously "bad boy storyline" (he is well-known for drunken antics and public displays of bad behavior) and demonstrate how his "monumental drip paintings reflect a uniquely American vision." Warhol traces the artist's transformation from "awkward kid" to "avant-garde player" and shows how he utilized his keen eye for spotting cultural trends to elevate the ordinary into the extraordinary. Bright-colored comic book–style illustrations interpret and expand upon the texts with drama, humor, and insight. Eloquent, informative, and amusing, the series' urbane viewpoint and sometimes-titillating images make it best suited for more mature readers.—Joy Fleishhacker, School Library Journal