Short Nights Of The Shadow Catcher
The Epic Life and Immortal Photographs of Edward Curtis
Readers rate it 4.1 (8 on Hardcover)
389 pages · Released Oct 9, 2012 · HarperCollins
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Short Nights Of The Shadow Catcher parent’s guide: what’s inside
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What it offers
A note for parents
This is a well-researched adult biography by a Pulitzer Prize–winning author that chronicles Edward Curtis's decades-long mission to document Native American tribes. While the subject matter is serious and includes historical traumas faced by Indigenous peoples, the tone is inspiring rather than graphic. The book celebrates Curtis's transformation from ambitious photographer to passionate advocate, making it accessible to mature teens interested in history, photography, or Indigenous cultures.
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From the publisher
A New York Times Notable Book A Winner of the Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction New York Times bestselling and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Timothy Egan reveals the life story of the man determined to preserve a people and culture in Short Nights of the Shadow Catcher: The Epic Life and Immortal Photographs... A New York Times Notable Book A Winner of the Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction New York Times bestselling and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Timothy Egan reveals the life story of the man determined to preserve a people and culture in Short Nights of the Shadow Catcher: The Epic Life and Immortal Photographs of Edward Curtis. “A vivid exploration of one man's lifelong obsession with an idea . . . Egan’s spirited biography might just bring [Curtis] the recognition that eluded him in life.” — The Washington Post Edward Curtis was charismatic, handsome, a passionate mountaineer, and a famous portrait photographer, the Annie Leibovitz of his time. He moved in rarefied circles, a friend to presidents, vaudeville stars, leading thinkers. But when he was thirty-two years old, in 1900, he gave it all up to pursue his Great Idea: to capture on film the continent’s original inhabitants before the old ways disappeared. Curtis spent the next three decades documenting the stories and rituals of more than eighty North American tribes. It took tremendous perseverance — ten years alone to persuade the Hopi to allow him to observe their Snake Dance ceremony. And the undertaking changed him profoundly, from detached observer to outraged advocate. Curtis would amass more than 40,000 photographs and 10,000 audio recordings, and he is credited with making the first narrative documentary film. In the process, the charming rogue with the grade school education created the most definitive archive of the American Indian.
Shelved under
- Biography & Autobiography
- Adventurous
- hopeful
- informative
- inspiring
- sad
- Adventure
- Native Americans
- Biography
- History
- BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY / Adventurers & Explorers
- Indians of North America
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ISBN 9780547840604 · HarperCollins