What can be said about Diane Arbus that would capture what her photographs do? Nothing really. Her street photography and portraits proved she was a beacon for the people on the outskirts and she was WAY ahead of her time. This bio is an intimate detailed account of her too short life in all of its intensity and daring. If you haven't heard of her and like disarming and sometimes grotesque photography, I encourage you to check her out. As a long time fan, I can say this bio put her art in perspective for me. ( )

Fascinating woman. ( )

The author is too in love with her subject. ( )

After seeing some wildly disturbing photos by Arbus in a museum years and years ago, I purchased this bio to try to understand the mind that created them. Bosworth's book clearly presented the evolutionary process of Arbus' photography, and in doing so gave an understanding to the linear progression of thought some artist's work through. ( )

A lot of Arbus's life in this that was new to me. It seemed though to be rather weighty at the beginning about her younger life in terms of facts and information compared to her later years which seemed to me to be glossed over through lack of information & in many instances mini bio's of people Arbus was associated with were used as filler. While Bosworth says at the start the family wouldn't talk to her for the book, there are a lot of quotes from various family members. I was stunned to read that Arbus's work extends into thousands & thousands of prints and most have not been published or seen and for whatever reason the family is holding onto those works. Bosworth mentions Diane's depression throughout and her subsequent suicide, but does not go far enough to any sort of resolution. There's a lot not said, or perhaps not known, although some portion of blame is assigned to her illness of hepatitis & toxic effects of medications and it would be interesting to hear other views. ( )