Shakespeares incomparable romantic comedy takes on a new and vivid life in these brilliant images by one of the 20th centurys leading illustrators. The fairy world of A Midsummer Nights Dream is the perfect milieu for the artistry of Arthur Rackham; a popular illustrator of fairy tales who possessed a striking gift for depicting fanciful creatures. His dreamlike visions provide a series of unique portraits from the enchanted wood outside ancient Athena; where Oberon and Titania rule a kingdom of diminutive sprites.Rackhams career coincided with the era known as the Golden Age of Illustration; an age that witnessed the rise of increasingly sophisticated color printing techniques. His interpretation of A Midsummer Nights Dream; which first appeared in 1908; received the full benefit of the improved technology; and this faithful reprint offers a quality of printing and sharpness of reproduction that rivals the limited and first editions. The complete text of the play appears here; along with 40 full-color and numerous black-and-white illustrations mdash; a splendid tribute by a master of fantasy art to an immortal play.
#1753060 in eBooks 2012-04-30 2012-04-02File Name: B00A73BGUS
Review
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Save Your MoneyBy W. CosbyI purchased this book with the purpose of writing a review for an online accordionist publication. After three tries I gave up as I couldnt find anything positive to say about the book. Correcting the inaccuracies in any number of individual sections would require a volume three times the size of the book. Unfortunately; without a thorough critical review; in time this book is liable to become an accepted reference on the instruments history by those not inclined to validate resources or references. I am most amazed that this effort was funded and ultimately published by an institution proclaiming Ethnomusicology as a field of study. Perhaps they dont see the value of a peer review prior to publication. I would say that my alma mater (UCLA) would not have accepted or given this work much more credibility than a very bad effort as middle school term paper - at least while I was there. My first inclination that there was a problem was in the title - which the true artists of the instrument would ultimately find in poor taste; if not outright offensive. Squeeze This would find better use in some low class venue of pornography vs. a cultural history of a musical instrument. Whereas Marion Jackson might be an accordion enthusiast; which is fine; the long-term interests of a history of the instrument would be better left to a person at least minimally versed in the practices of good research.11 of 12 people found the following review helpful. Pretty good book about the accordion; but disappointing.By Willard P.I recently started purchasing books about the history of the accordion. My father was one of the major players in accordion history; and I was curious as to how Ms. Jacobson viewed his contributions. She got some of it right. However; there was one major accomplishment of his that she basically blew. That was the impact and importance of the accordion curriculum he established at the University of Houston.This curriculum was the basis of many of the college/university level courses that followed. The course at UMKC would probably not have existed had it not been for the information he shared with Joan Sommers. His course at U of H was the first successful course of its kind. One had been tried earlier at one of the northern universities; but it barely lasted a semester. His lasted for 18 years. His students were the creme de la creme. They went through an agonizing; but thorough auditioning process. There were students from all over the US.Unfortunately; when the U of H became a state supported institution; the new chairman of the music department refused to allow the accordion to be taught there. So after a run of 18 years; his accordion curriculum headed North to UMKC.His contributions to the design of the convertor system that was used by Titano and some other accordion manufacturers were also of extreme importance. I still have a prototype of one of the instruments he designed.There were other minor factual errors in the book; as well.Had Ms. Jacobson contacted me; I could have corrected some of these errors and oversights.11 of 12 people found the following review helpful. Hippest Instrument in Musical HistoryBy GintGothamA friend recently sent me a public-radio interview in which Professor Marion Jacobson discusses her fascinating book "Squeeze This! A Cultural History of the Accordion in America." After hearing the broadcast; in which audio samples portray the "scrappy squeezebox" as "most ridiculed" and "kitschy;" I asked myself: "Why have I been pumping this infernal `stomach Steinway (or `navel Novachord) three hours a day for almost sixty-five years?" To answer that question; I ordered the book from .Growing up Polish in Chicago during the 1940s; when a salesman from Wilkins School of Music visited us on April 25; 1949; I already knew what an accordion was. With my approval; my dad bought into the concept; and my first lesson was on May 9; 1949. The rest is history--jamming with the likes of the Duke and Gerry; working for Gatemouth; and Fred Wesley. But after reading Ms. Jacobsons scholarly prose; Im still not sure I can come up with an answer.Her academic style impresses me; along with the numerous anecdotes and endnotes; colorfully illustrated photographs; humor; and information and links about the history and marketing of the accordion (except for "old-timey jam sessions;" she defines concepts Ive wondered about for years). However; as well-researched as the story appears to be; Ms. Jacobson relates only a tiny piece of a much larger picture. What I found disappointing was her lack of sensitivity toward my axe; comparing it to the guitar; and perpetuating myths that serious accordionists have been trying to bury for years. She allots inordinate space to talented entertainers like Contino; Welk; and the two Yankovics; while those who made the accordion one of the hippest instruments in musical history are innocently ignored. I can understand the authors fascination with "the amateur world of squeezing" (as one reviewer puts it); the accordion is very difficult to master. But she leaves out the accordionists who motivate us to become what Joshua Camp calls those "serious-chops" guys (or gals).Fortunately; most of the following artists--living and dead--who are conspicuously absent from this treatise can be heard with a click of the mouse: Nick Ariondo; Wolmer Beltrami; Joe Burke; Lanny Di Jay; Milton DeLugg; Ernie Felice; Gordie Fleming; Richard Galliano; Julie Gardner; Tommy Gumina; Alice Hall; Pete Jolly; Kato Kanako; Gorni Kramer; Mat Mathews; Johnny Meijer; Russ Messina; Mie Miki; Eddie Monteiro (his comments appear on the frontispiece); Joe Natoli; Cory Pesaturo; Leon Sash; George Shearing; Cornell Smelser; Reno Tondelli; Joe Vito; and others too numerous to mention; but they are part of the answer as to why one plays an accordion. To slight these people would be like writing a history of the Republican Party; and omitting Medill; Greeley or Lincoln. For those who know nothing about the accordion; oversights of this kind create a disservice. I feel this book is frightfully lopsided and demonstrates a shortcoming inherent in a lot of academic writing by those with scholarly credentials: it can appear credible to neophytes. Theres more to the accordion than "Lady of Spain" or "Who Stole the Keeshka?"Hopefully; when the sequel to "Squeeze This!" is published; Marion Jacobson will fill us in on the rest of the narrative; because she writes well; but the accordion is more than just "Wunnerful; wunnerful." Its spectacular to us serious-chops guys!Squeeze This!: A Cultural History of the Accordion in America (Folklore Studies in Multicultural World)