An analysis of the relationship between race and art, with a focus on Black histories in art.

While Tolstoy may be best remembered as the talented Russian author of such monumentally great works as "War and Peace" and "Anna Karenina", he also wrote prolifically in essay format on various subjects. In this volume Tolstoy turns his attention to the study of aesthetics and art in all its forms. Based on fifteen years of research, "What is Art?" is Tolstoy's intellectual exposition into answering the titular question. Rich with criticism for his...

"A discarded painting in a junk pile, a skeleton in an attic, and the greatest racehorse in American history: from these strands, a Pulitzer Prize winner braids a sweeping story of spirit, obsession, and injustice across American history Kentucky, 1850. Jarrett, an enslaved groom, and a bay foal forge a bond of understanding that will carry the horse to record-setting victories across the South. As the nation erupts in civil war, an itinerant young...

E. Clerihew Bentley is credited with the invention of the 'clerihew', or humorous verse aphorism, on biographical subjects. This collection, which was illustrated by G. K Chesterton, contains thirty-nine irregular quatrains on historical and contemporary celebrities, starting with Sir Christopher Wren and concluding with the publisher, T. Werner Laurie.

"Angela Haseltine Pozzi makes animal sculptures from plastic that washes up on beaches. Photos of these sculptures are paired with facts about featured sea creatures and the impacts of plastic on sea life"--

Called upon by The Hammond Museum, Spenser accepts his latest case - to provide protection during a ransom exchange - money for a stolen painting. The case becomes personal when Spenser fails to protect his client and the valuable painting remains stolen. Spenser enters into a daring game of cat-and mouse with the thieves. But this is a game he might not come out of alive. Completed the year before he passed away, "Painted Ladies" is Spenser and Robert...

Diana O'Toole is perfectly on track. She will be married by thirty, done having kids by thirty-five, and move out to the New York City suburbs, all while climbing the professional ladder in the cutthroat art auction world. She's an associate specialist at Sotheby's now, but her boss has hinted at a promotion if she can close a deal with a high-profile client. She's not engaged just yet, but she knows her boyfriend, Finn, a surgical resident, is about...

"The Cossacks" is believed to be somewhat autobiographical, partially based on Tolstoy's experiences in the Caucasus during the last stages of the Caucasian War. Disenchanted with his privileged life in Russian society, nobleman Dmitri Olenin joins the army as a cadet, in the hopes of escaping the superficiality of his daily life. On a quest to find "completeness," he naively hopes to find serenity among the "simple" people of the Caucasus. In an...

"Olalla" is a short story by the Scottish novelist, poet, essayist and travel writer Robert Louis Stevenson. It was first published in the Christmas 1885 issue of The Court and Society Review, then re-published in 1887 as part of the collection The Merry Men and Other Tales and Fables. It is set in Spain during the Peninsular War. A Scottish soldier recovering from his injuries in Spain goes to stay with a local family, where he eventually meets the...

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