A review by amymapsmith
Sontag: Her Life and Work by Benjamin Moser

4.0

I was introduced to Susan Sontag in college when I read On Photography and Regarding the Pain of Others for a photography class. She must have just passed away about that time, because a group of us went to hear Annie Leibovitz give a lecture, and I remember her talking a lot about Susan Sontag. In fact, it seemed she couldn't talk about much else. I remember wondering why she decided to do the speaking tour at all, she was so, so sad. Until reading this biography, that was what I knew of Sontag – she wrote about photography, and she had a profound impact on a photographer I admired. Moser's account of Sontag's life, thorough to the point of being tedious at times, filled in the blank spaces. From childhood through adolescence to adulthood to her final days, Moser presents a balanced depiction of a complicated person, with the good as well as the bad. At moments I found myself inspired by how Sontag seemed to do whatever the fuck she wanted all the time. At other times I felt pangs of empathy for the people in her life she treated with a blend of tough love, disrespect, and sometimes outright dismissal. A worthwhile – and for anyone who's been influenced by Sontag, important – read/listen.