Customer Reviews

Kansas 24/7

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Most of the photographs depicted could have been taken anywhere. The natural beauty of this state has been ignored. This could have been a great series. Very disappointing.

Other than a Dorothy look-a-like sporting a gingham jumper and ruby red slippers on the cover, there is nothing about this book that is uniquely Kansas. With a title of Kansas 24/7, I was expecting a book of photographs about -- well, duh -- Kansas. This is not necessarily a book about Kansas; it is a collection of photographs taken in Kansas.

The photographs are interesting -- but they're just regular people doing their routine daily activities -- feeding babies, giving kids a bath, gardening in the yard, praying around the dinner table, getting a haircut, working at a factory -- in Kansas. Perhaps that's the point of the book -- to record common people doing everyday things -- but I was expecting something different. I was expecting a book that captured the uniqueness of Kansas in some way -- the flat expanse of western Kansas, the oil wells and wheatfields, the Flint HIlls, the beauty and barrenness of the landscape, the landmarks. Pictures of a family inside of their house going about their business could be taken anywhere -- the fact that the house just happens to be located in Leawood, Kansas doesn't make the photographs about Kansas. Pictures of parents feeding babies in highchairs in Kansas and pictures of people working in a restaurant in Kansas don't communicate the specialness of Kansas. Even the selection of photos doesn't seem to represent all of Kansas -- there are way too many photographs of farms & farm animals and very few photographs of city life.

I purchased the book to give it as a gift for European visitors, thinking it would be a nice reminder of their visit to this fine state. I was mistaken.

Alhthough I enjoyed looking at the photographs, I wouldn't buy the book again, and I certainly choose it as a gift about Kansas.