This Martin Parr retrospective is rich in the wit and colour that Parr's work is best known for, but also offers the first serious assessment of the career of this major contemporary photographer. Parr combines an urge to document with a bemusement about social behaviour. Author Val Williams, a distinguished writer and curator, considers his better known later work in the context of his full career and in so doing shows how Parr's photographs have highlighted political and social change over the last thirty years. While Parr began his career in Britain, he now has a large international following. This book offers the overview that many have eagerly awaited. It features fascinating previously unpublished early work, his startling and original 1974 installation Home Sweet Home, early black-and-white photographs of the people and places of Hebden Bridge in Yorkshire where he lived and worked in the 1970s, photographs from Ireland and Salford, and of course a selection of the very best images from all his published books including The Last Resort, The Cost of Living, Signs of the Times and Think of England (published by Phaidon). With unlimited access to Parr's archives and quoting from extensive interviews, Val Williams charts Parr's life and career, revealing insights into his influences and attitudes and assessing his importance within the worlds of art and photography.

《彩色美国史》为读者展开了一段回忆美国往事的趣味旅行，它拒绝简单地堆砌史料、笼统地评述历史，而是在美国历史的整体视野上，灵巧地以美国历史中的26个重要事件为主线，实实在在。地游述着一个个关于英雄与反派、圣人与罪人的故事，既迂回曲折、又幽默风趣，完整地表现了一个乐观的民族如何在不平静的历史中创造着一个未知却充满希望的未来。 这些故事既包含了那些争取个人、政治和宗教自由的斗争，也有民众与政治家对国内外危机的反应，更有对美国的民族目标和价值观的重新诠释。正是透过这26个重要事件，500年的美国历史得以清晰地构建和再现。 “历史可以让我们洞察危机。”历史学家小施莱辛格如是说。过往的事件和形势，过往的故事和教训，也许可以帮助今天的人们洞察这个国家和民族面临的新问题。 《彩色美国史·上》：1519—1849：战前美国的社会改革 1848年，欧洲革命开始，美国反奴隶制起义此起彼伏。一个夏日的下午，几位妇女在美国纽约州滑铁卢村喝着下午茶。这本应是一次宁静的聚会，然而就在这个特殊的星期四下午（7月13日），围坐在简•亨特家客厅里的5个女人却感觉到她们正在创造历史。 《彩色美国史·中》：1850—1926：内战与重建 1864年11月16日清晨，6.2万名联邦士兵分成4队离开了佐治亚州的亚特兰大。他们已在那驻扎了两个月。此次行动的目的地是一个秘密，然而不久后人们发现，大军正朝着300英里外的海滨城市沙凡那开去。联邦军队的总指挥是威廉•提康普赛•谢尔曼将军。 《彩色美国史·下》：1927—2002：美国强权下的世界和平 1962年10月，美国和苏联在核武战争的备战状态中对抗了13天。从当时的核武威力看来，可能有5亿人处于危险之中。此前一年，国防部预计，与苏联的全面战争可能导致1.2亿美国人伤亡，而苏联的伤亡人数也不会低于这个数字，同时还会殃及欧洲和加拿大。如果战争再波及到中国，最后的死亡人数将无法估算。