Robert Capa A graphic biography

French author/illustrator Silloray (The Book of Roger) offers a quiet, simmering take on Robert Capa (1913-54), one of the greatest photographers of the 20th century. Renowned for his war photography, the Budapest-born artist once said, "If your photographs aren't good enough, you're not close enough," and he lived these words, often crawling in the grass next to soldiers in combat, documenting the Spanish Civil War, World War II, and many other major conflicts. Haunted by these encounters, Capa continued to push himself, seeking to capture the reality of some of the most brutal scenes in history. This biography focuses on the latter half of Capa's life, beginning with his relationship with Gerda Taro, who was herself a fearless photographer, and ending with Capa's death while on assignment in Indochina. Throughout, Silloray shows Capa reworking his own image to be successful, struggling with the deaths of loved ones, grappling with the concepts of mortality vs. mediocrity, and making the ultimate sacrifice for his art. Sepia-toned watercolor-washed illustrations, arranged in smaller panel grids, give the work a gritty, dirty look as Capa moves through the dust to get the next shot. Verdict A fine volume that brings to life a great artist who wanted to show people what was happening in the world around them. For fans of war photography and artist biographies. [Previewed in Douglas Rednour's "Comics Cross Over," LJ 6/15/17.]-Ryan Claringbole, Wisconsin Dept. of Pub. Instruction, Madison © Copyright 2017. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Gr 9 Up-The man who gained fame as photographer Robert Capa was born Endre Friedmann in Budapest, Hungary, in 1913. Though he was selling frontline photos from the Spanish Civil War at the age of 23, it wasn't until his companion Gerda Taro rechristened him as roguish American "Robert Capa" that editors worldwide began to take notice. Taro (who was born Gerta Pohorylle and took a new name of her own) and Capa were daring photographers, and Taro's photos were at times published under Capa's byline. Silloray's drawings, in shades of black, brown, tan, and chalky white, echo Capa's most famous shots, interspersed with frames of Capa and Taro's frantically paced lifestyle. Capa is rarely drawn without a cigarette, and after Taro's death at 27, he continued drinking, gambling, and romancing until his own death at 41, in a field near Thai Binh in Vietnam. The book contains some nudity and sexual situations. Silloray makes excellent use of the graphic novel format, with Capa narrating his own story through detailed, emotionally rich illustrations. VERDICT Worthy of a place in any high school biography collection. Especially enlightening when paired with Marc Aronson and Marina Budhos's Eyes of the World: Robert Capa, Gerda Taro, and the Invention of Modern Photojournalism.-Maggie Knapp, Trinity Valley School, Fort Worth, TX © Copyright 2017. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

The great war photographer revisits public triumphs and private tragedies over the course of a tumultuous career.Speaking in the first person, Capa shows how he earned his reputation on front lines from the Spanish Civil War to the French defeat in Southeast Asia and on other major assignments along the way. In between he recalls personal and professional struggles, hobnobbing with the likes of Ernest Hemingway and Pablo Picasso, and multiple affairs, most notably with fellow photographer Gerda Taro and Ingrid Bergman. His monologue is delivered in a small, faux hand-lettered typeface that captions neatly squared-off sepia panels of boudoirs and battlefronts drawn in ink with white highlights. Celebrities and associates are recognizable, but most figures are too loosely rendered to judge ethnic origins except from context. The art and spare narrative voice combine to give the memoir a somber, distant feel, but some sequences, such as the D-Day landing at Omaha Beach in which the photographer, cursing in English and his native Hungarian, struggles to get his shots as troops are dying on every side, are nightmarishly vivid. Though none of Capa's photos are reproduced here, Silloray adds visual references to many of the more iconic ones; readers who go on to seek out the originals may be surprised at how many are part of our enduring cultural legacy. Frank and sharply focused, if lacking the depth of field displayed in Marc Aronson and Marina Budhos' Eyes of the World (2017). (Graphic biography. 12-14) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.