Work: The World in Photographs - Hardcover

Ferdinand Protzman

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0792262042 ISBN 13: 9780792262046

Publisher: National Geographic, 2006

Synopsis

Culled from National Geographic's vast photographic archive as well as other important collections, this fascinating, wide-ranging volume presents a wonderfully varied group portrait of people at work—in great cities and tiny villages; in 19th-century China and 21st-century New York; in fields, factories, food carts, four-star restaurants, and just about everywhere else we earn our keep. We see cowboys and clowns, dancers and dog groomers, miners and models. On one page, drill sergeants bark orders to U.S. Navy recruits; on another, young Tibetan monks study Buddhist scriptures; and on another, Kenyan women spread coffee beans to dry.

Work is a subject that is both worldwide and personal. It is a shared endeavor at the very core of our identity. From the glamour of a Parisian fashion show to the grit of an African diamond mine, there are countless ways to make a living. The book illuminates scores of them—many in never-before-published photographs—offering revealing glimpses into various eras and cultures and engaging the reader with entertaining text and informative captions.

With a wonderful mix of the utterly unexpected and the instantly familiar, this vivid panorama takes an essential human activity and shows us myriad ways in which work is at once universal and delightfully, unforgettably unique.

About this title

About the Author

Ferdinand Protzman is an award-winning writer, cultural critic, and journalist. He is the author of Landscape: Photographs of Time and Place, and Wide Angle: National Geographic Greatest Places; his reviews and feature articles have appeared in such periodicals as the New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and ARTnews. He lives in Kensington, Maryland.

From School Library Journal

Adult/High School–The enormous variety of things that people do for survival and sustenance is impressively represented in this book. Neither doctor nor lawyer is included, and only a small number of white-collar jobs make the cut. Instead, readers see clover collectors in Yemen, bootblacks in Portugal, ice fishermen in Russia, coal miners in West Virginia, and salt miners in Ukraine. The volume is arranged in geographic sections: Europe, Asia, Africa, Middle East, Americas, and Islands. Interspersed among them are three thematic portfolios: agriculture, extraction (mining), and manufacturing. Protzman contributes engaging and helpful introductions to each geographic section, as well as brief notes introducing the thematic portfolios. With few exceptions the photos are captivating and of high technical quality. Most were taken within the past 20 years, although some are historical, including a few early-20th-century images by Lewis Hine. Many of the images display poverty, hardship, and oppression (especially of children). A few are whimsical, including a workhorse keeping cool in Spain with the aid of a tiny umbrella. The message that work can be tedious and dangerous, as well as rewarding and enjoyable, is thoroughly established.–Robert Saunderson, Berkeley Public Library, CA
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About this edition

• Publisher: National Geographic
• Publication date: 2006
• ISBN 10: 0792262042
• ISBN 13: 9780792262046
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 352