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creechance's review
3.0
This is an interesting book in that it profiles interesting lives. However, it contains a lot of opinion and a quite a bit of what I found to be tangential.
lindseysparks's review
1.0
The author had a horrible habit of static g his opinion as fact. This was more of a collection of brief rambling bios of people he likes than something specific about creators. I was expecting something more about how/why these people created. Half of the time he started rambling about someone else entirely instead of the person the chapter was supposed to be about. I made it about halfway through, then started skimming and skipping around. Disappointing.
chairmanbernanke's review against another edition
3.0
Interesting details and a reasonable treatment of some great creators.
charityjohnson's review
4.0
Nearly finished. Enjoyable wandering through the centuries, I would have wished for more depth than reporting.
xenobio's review against another edition
4.0
A collection of wonderfully written bite-sized biographies. Ideal for reading in short spurts, like on the bus or before bed.
tlsouthard's review
3.0
3 1/2 stars. I don't know how I even came to read this book. What made me check it out of the library? I'm glad I did though. This book is probably read dipping into it a chapter at a time - rather than all at one go. Each essay stands on its own. Some of them are better than others.
This is NOT some straight-up history/biography of various "creators". This whole book is *Paul Johnson's* take on those creators. It's like discussing these people with someone who has spent some time *thinking* about these people. And then tells you what he thinks - not just the facts. That made it more enjoyable to me. I want the quotes or the stories or the gossip, even, about these people, not just Wikipedia facts.
Honestly, though, the book suffers from one thing - a lack of PICTURES. Especially in those chapters regarding the more visual arts. I spent a good bit of time looking up art by Durer, Hokusai, Tiffany, Balenciaga, etc. because while Johnson may know whereof he speaks *I* did not. A few pictures might have helped. But that's a minor quibble.
This is NOT some straight-up history/biography of various "creators". This whole book is *Paul Johnson's* take on those creators. It's like discussing these people with someone who has spent some time *thinking* about these people. And then tells you what he thinks - not just the facts. That made it more enjoyable to me. I want the quotes or the stories or the gossip, even, about these people, not just Wikipedia facts.
Honestly, though, the book suffers from one thing - a lack of PICTURES. Especially in those chapters regarding the more visual arts. I spent a good bit of time looking up art by Durer, Hokusai, Tiffany, Balenciaga, etc. because while Johnson may know whereof he speaks *I* did not. A few pictures might have helped. But that's a minor quibble.
candace1937's review against another edition
3.0
I had to read this book for my Creativity and the Origin of Ideas class. We had to pick one creator in the book and make a presentation on them. So I only read chapter 12 to do more research on T.S. Eliot. I really enjoy it, I can't wait to actually read some of his work one day. I might go back and read other chapters.
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