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Black & White
by
Dani Shapiro
In Dani Shapiro's captivating new novel, a mother struggles to protect her young daughter from the dark secrets of her past. Haunting and insightful, Black & White explores the notions of family and motherhood, inspiration and obligation.Find out more about Shapiro's artistic practices and influences below. --Daphne Durham 10 Second Interview: A Few Words with Dani Sha...more
Q: What is your writing process like? Has it changed from book to book?Paperback, 256 pages
Published
June 10th 2008
by Anchor
(first published 2007)
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Depictions of child nudity or children with nude adults appear in works of art in various cultures and historical periods. These attitudes have changed over time and have become increasingly frowned upon particularly in recent years, and especially in the case of photography. In recent years there have been a few incidents in which snapshots taken by parents of their infant or toddler children bathing or otherwise naked were challenged as child pornography. In May 2008, police in Sydney, Austral...more
When I first heard about this book, all I could think was, "Uh, Sally Mann?" It seemed ridiculous. But I still wanted to read it.
And it was the equivalent of staying in bed and watching a bad part-Lifetime original movie, part bad indie film. I mean, the bitchy, size two, angry sister and the sister who was the subject of so many provocative photos, taken by her mother. Her mother who is now dying of cancer. Don't they all?
Ruth Dunne. And no one in the book thought to connect her to Joan Didion...more
And it was the equivalent of staying in bed and watching a bad part-Lifetime original movie, part bad indie film. I mean, the bitchy, size two, angry sister and the sister who was the subject of so many provocative photos, taken by her mother. Her mother who is now dying of cancer. Don't they all?
Ruth Dunne. And no one in the book thought to connect her to Joan Didion...more
This reminded me of a Jodi Picoult novel--a little more subtle, thank goodness, but still an Issue-Driven novel. The main character, Clara, has a problem from her past: in this case, her mother became a famous photographer based on nude photos of the daughter that could be construed as abuse rather than art. Mother and daughter are estranged, then when the mother is terminally ill, Clara visits her. It's not really enough for a whole novel; it would have been a good long story, but there's not e...more
Clara hasn't seen her mother in fourteen years when she left home at eighteen. Her mother Ruth is a famous photographer, most famous for a series she did of Clara. The series covered Clara from the age of 3 to 14, all of them naked. Clara has stayed in touch with her older sister Robin, who lives in New York City with her husband and three children and who has become a lawyer like their father. When Robin calls Clara to tell her Ruth is ill and Robin can't cope, Clara goes to New York and visits...more
Emotions Run High in this Family Drama
I thought the book "Black & White" was a very excellent book. The characters were well developed and Shapiro's descriptions of the various scenes, especially the photo shoots, were exceptional. I could easily imagine the characters and the scenes in my mind. There are many reviews on this book so I won't clutter up the page with more detail except to reveal that the story focuses on the relationship between the mother, Ruth Dunne, a noted photographer a...more
I thought the book "Black & White" was a very excellent book. The characters were well developed and Shapiro's descriptions of the various scenes, especially the photo shoots, were exceptional. I could easily imagine the characters and the scenes in my mind. There are many reviews on this book so I won't clutter up the page with more detail except to reveal that the story focuses on the relationship between the mother, Ruth Dunne, a noted photographer a...more
Dani Shapiro is one of my new favorite authors of all-time! Her writing is intimate and candid, though dark and real. Sadly, Black and White is her latest novel and already going on four years old! However, Shapiro has recently released a memoir called Devotion.
Black and White is about Clara, a woman intent on protecting her young daughter Sam from learning the truth about her grandmother Ruth, a famous artist who used Clara by exploiting her naked body as art in the form of photography. When Ru...more
Black and White is about Clara, a woman intent on protecting her young daughter Sam from learning the truth about her grandmother Ruth, a famous artist who used Clara by exploiting her naked body as art in the form of photography. When Ru...more
I'm so mad at this book. Shapiro spins a fantastic premise - a woman who grew up having her mother obsessively take borderline porno pictures of her as a child to satisfy her artistic cravings as well as the fame this found her, and how this ruined their relationship - and then fails miserably at the execution.
The idea of a mother putting her art first as well as the question of exploitation is interesting, along with the question of privacy - who has the rights to these pictures, really? But al...more
The idea of a mother putting her art first as well as the question of exploitation is interesting, along with the question of privacy - who has the rights to these pictures, really? But al...more
My mom suggested this one. It's about Clara, 32 year old woman who left home at 18 and never returned. Her mother who is a famous photographer is gravely ill with lung cancer and Clara returns home. I would've given this 5 stars, but there was something about the way that the story was revealed that kind of made it a little slower paced. The dialog had a lot of unfinished sentences because of the fragile topic and I just didn't like that. Kind of took to long to pry the story out.
I found this book in a used book store. The Winter Park Used book store to be exact. First of all I would like to say that this book store is amazing. I got this book for a dollar and It was easily a fourteen dollar book. I loved this book. It had a a very "jodi Picoult" feel to it.
The story starts with Clara a women who has established herself within the routine of a normal life. She has a loving husband, and a beautiful nine year old daughter. She resides in a sleepy town, safe away from civi...more
The story starts with Clara a women who has established herself within the routine of a normal life. She has a loving husband, and a beautiful nine year old daughter. She resides in a sleepy town, safe away from civi...more
Dani Shapiro "has developed a specialty in writing about difficult mother-daughter bonds" (San Francisco Chronicle). Yet while critics agreed that the relationship between Clara and her mother Ruth (who is loosely based on the photographer Sally Mann) presents a rich opportunity, they disagreed over Shapiro's execution. Those praising the novel found the characters well drawn, but others thought the novel uneven, with a compelling storyline weighed down by the predictability of Clara's emotional
...more
This is a powerful and engaging book exploring the most powerful relationship of all--that between a mother and child--to be more specific--the relationship between a mother and a daughter. In this book, the daughter is the unwilling muse and model for her mother's photography. When her mother achieves great success, both are locked in a battle for control while the father and older sister look on. It was fascinating to "watch" the family and their interaction. I wondered throughout the book why...more
An intriguing story about a girl who becomes the primary subject of her nother's controversial and best-selling photography in NYC in the 70's and 80's. The book alternates between the modern day story of Clara as an adult with a daughter of her own, (goiing back to NY when her mother is dying of cancer); and the little girl who hated being her mother's model. The author does a great job portraying the dynamic between Clara and her sister, Robin, who is now a successful lawyer in NY and resented...more
A great read and worth another listen!!
Clara Brodeur has spent her entire adult life pulling herself away from her famous mother, the renowned and controversial photographer Ruth Dunne, whose towering reputation rests on the unsettling nude portraits she took of her young daughter.
At age eighteen, sick of her notoriety as “the girl in the pictures,” Clara fled New York City, settling and making her own family in small-town Maine. But years later, when Ruth reaches out from her deathbed, Clara s...more
Clara Brodeur has spent her entire adult life pulling herself away from her famous mother, the renowned and controversial photographer Ruth Dunne, whose towering reputation rests on the unsettling nude portraits she took of her young daughter.
At age eighteen, sick of her notoriety as “the girl in the pictures,” Clara fled New York City, settling and making her own family in small-town Maine. But years later, when Ruth reaches out from her deathbed, Clara s...more
I read this because I enjoyed Dani Shapiro's memoir, Devotion. Black & White is an interesting novel, the premise being that the mother, Ruth, takes nude photos of her daughter, Clare when she is three years old, she becomes very famous and wealthy for doing so and she continues to use Clare as a subject until she is 14 years old. Clare, of course has issues with this.
The story begins when Clare learns of her mother's terminal illness after years of estrangement and is called "home" by her...more
The story begins when Clare learns of her mother's terminal illness after years of estrangement and is called "home" by her...more
Jul 20, 2012
Amblingbooks.com
marked it as to-read
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
audiobooks,
psychological
This spellbinding novel about art, fame, ambition, and family explores a provocative question: Is it possible for a mother to be true to herself and true to her children at the same time? This brilliant examination of motherhood--a novel that pits artistic inspiration against maternal obligation and asks whether the two can ever be fully reconciled--explores the limits and duties of family loyalties, and even of love. Gripping, haunting, and psychologically complex.
Listen to Black and White on y...more
Listen to Black and White on y...more
not so great -- except the main storyline: Clara's mom is a photographer who becomes world famous after taking semi-nude photographs of Clara as she grew up -- photos that Clara was coerced into, that many believe are child porn and cause Clara to run away as a teenager to build a separate life. Clara's mom is dying and she has to make choices about what to tell her new family and how to deal with her mother. the writing is sub-par and I seem to be unable to give up on Shapiro because of the lov...more
Jun 22, 2010
Dawn Michelle
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommended to Dawn Michelle by:
A lovely old lady in Indigo
Shelves:
books-read-in-2010
Read~June 21,2010
4 Stars
This was an interesting book. I really enjoyed reading this, even as my emotions were on a churning roller-coaster ride.
The main question here is...what constitutes "Art" and what constitutes child abuse?
Clara has been away from NYC, her mother and all the life she has known (but not the memories and the pain the continually cause) for over 15 years when she gets a desperate call from her sister begging her for her help with their mother who is dying.
And so begins a j...more
Riveting read. Uncomfortable at times, the question of an artist's responsibility to his or her family-- and to what degree family members and their experiences should be used for the artist's material/inspiration. Dani Shapiro takes this issue to the limit, with a mother photographer obsessed with documenting her young daughter, in photos that rest on the murky line of art or abuse.
Fast paced and beautifully written, this novel will make every artist/writer/parent think about their relationshi...more
Fast paced and beautifully written, this novel will make every artist/writer/parent think about their relationshi...more
I was looking for another Dani Shapiro book when I picked this one up -- and it was good enough that I'll probably try to find her new one now too, Devotions. I enjoyed reading this - the descriptions of the art gallery scenes, the upper west side lifestyle, etc were fun to read. I think the big issue in the book, a mother who exploits her young daughter for her art, is a really interesting topic and Shapiro did a pretty good job explaining the mother's pt of view although I was confused by the...more
Oct 08, 2012
Amy
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
literaryfiction,
book-discussion-books
This is a book that I had to read for an upcoming book discussion. What I love about my discussion group is that it "forces" me to read books that I wouldn't normally pick-up and I would not have touched this with a 10-foot pole!
Having said this, I'm glad that I read it. It takes me out of my comfort zone and if nothing else, it is a very discussable book.
It all begins when Clara receives a phone call in the middle of the night. Her mother is sick & dying and Clara's sister, Robin, is callin...more
Having said this, I'm glad that I read it. It takes me out of my comfort zone and if nothing else, it is a very discussable book.
It all begins when Clara receives a phone call in the middle of the night. Her mother is sick & dying and Clara's sister, Robin, is callin...more
Emotional and Riveting
Black and White is the first of Dani Shapiro's novels I've read, and I found it riveting. The excellent writing is very descriptive, which allowed my mind to be fully transported to the two main settings, an L.L. Bean version of a Maine island in winter and the black-clad gallery world of Manhattan. The rich texture of Shapiro's writing shines through with minute detail. She creates nearly every scene with a 360-degree view. This quality added to my ability to imagine the e...more
Black and White is the first of Dani Shapiro's novels I've read, and I found it riveting. The excellent writing is very descriptive, which allowed my mind to be fully transported to the two main settings, an L.L. Bean version of a Maine island in winter and the black-clad gallery world of Manhattan. The rich texture of Shapiro's writing shines through with minute detail. She creates nearly every scene with a 360-degree view. This quality added to my ability to imagine the e...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Something about this book never really got resolved for me. Was Clara's mom actually exploitative? I think we would know if we knew more about Clara's marriage, but her husband (and daughter) are virtually shadows. I needed more information, I think, and fewer plot twists. I agree that it was a little more "Lifetime movie of the week" than I had hoped it would be. But I held out hope until the end, unable to put it down!
This books centers around a young girl named Clara, daughter of a famous NYC photographer who made her living shooting very questionable pictures of Clara ages three –fourteen. The very fine line of art vs. pornography is crossed many, many times and the main plot of the book is Clara’s relationship with her mother, her sister and her daughter. I absolutely loved this book.
I think the story touched different issues, but it got kind of lost in the end. The emotion and struggles between daughter and mother, siblings, or with the one walk right beside. Because the mother is dying due to cancer, all the issues just ran up to everyone's face. somehow they got reconciled in the end of story after the death. I am not sure I follow them. it was ok.
This is a novel that pits artistic inspiration against maternal obligation and asks whether the two can ever be fully reconciled. I know what my answer was at the end because I totally read the book from a mom perspective. I was really angry at the mom the whole book - listened to it on tape which always makes the story a little different for me.
This is a mother-daughter relationship story that asks some interesting questions that are never really answered by the author. The mother is a photographer who gained great fame from a series of pictures all featuring her young daughter. Nude. Between the ages of 3 and 14. Porn or art? A mother's love or an artist's abusive obsession?
Although I do not entirely agree with the point of view of the main character nor can I swallow the conclusion of the book, this was a very well written and intriguing book. It was a clever (honestly) way to discuss the often times very complicated relationship between mothers and their daughters. A provocative story that lingers for a while after you have finished reading. I enjoyed it very much.
Very good book. She explores family dynamics and the messiness of life. From the start we learn that the mom in the story takes pictures of her daughter. Some may say these pix are works of art while others may say that they were child pornography. Loyalty and family obligations to one another are challenged in the story.
This was tough book to read for about the first half. The subject matter hurt me. As a mother myself, I could not imagine doing this to my child. I had to read in small doses. Content aside, I found the first 3/4 of the novel believable. The end was a bit disappointing. Wrapped up a little too conveniently for me.
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Dani Shapiro is the author of five novels and the best-selling memoir Slow Motion. She has also written for magazines such as The New Yorker and Elle.
She lives with her husband and young son in Litchfield County, Connecticut.
More about Dani Shapiro...
She lives with her husband and young son in Litchfield County, Connecticut.
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Jun 16, 2008 09:45am