The Regulars [Hardcover]

Jonathan Franzen (Introduction), Sarah Stolfa (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 2009

A bartender-photographer trains her eye on the patrons at McGlinchey's bar

It's four o'clock in the afternoon and the regulars start to file into the perpetual twilight of a downtown bar in Philadelphia. Bartender Sarah Stolfa pours out the drinks then picks up her camera.

McGlinchey's is a haven for drinkers from all walks of life: You'll meet the rebellious college student with pink-streaked hair and a bottle of hangover-inducing brew; the sharply dressed businessman with a yearning look; the pensive loner carefully ignoring his newspaper and bag of chips; and the former prom king with his tie and V-neck sweater, double fisting a shot and a beer.

The urban bar experience is brought to life in these pages, topped off with an introduction written by best-selling author Jonathan Franzen and Stolfa's own meditations on finding her inspiration while tending bar. For young hipsters, grizzled old-timers, and everyone in between, The Regulars is as elegant as an Old Master painting and as down-home as a bottle of Bud.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"The Regulars has something like the collective impact of a great collection of Short Stories, like Joyce's Dubliners or Raymond Carver's Will You Please be Quiet Please, creating an entire world before our eyes. Sarah Stolfa is a tremendous talent."
--Jay McInerney

About the Author

Sarah Stolfa began photographing while tending bar in Philadelphia as a college student at Drexel University. Despite being relatively new to the field, she won The New York Times Photography Contest for College Students. Her numerous awards include the Noah Addis Photojournalism Award and an artist in residency at the Whitney Museum. She is represented by Gallery 339 in Philadelphia and Silverstein Photography in New York.


Jonathan Franzen is the author of numerous books, among them The Twenty-Seventh City, How to Be Alone, and the hugely successful The Corrections, winner of the National Book Award. He lives in New York City.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 96 pages
• Publisher: Artisan; 1 edition (July 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1579654029
• ISBN-13: 978-1579654023
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 7.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #475,551 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words, June 19, 2010

By 

Ismail Elshareef "ielshareef" (Los Angeles, CA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Regulars (Hardcover)

Back in the mid 2000s, a photographer bartended at a dive bar in downtown Philadelphia. She served her customers beer, whisky or wine, and then took their picture. The result is a series of portraits that beautifully and honestly tell the story of the city of brotherly love, and in turn, America's. The stories, the portraits and the wonder they convey is found in The Regulars by Sarah Stofla.

The patrons at McGlinchey's bar, where Sarah bartended, came from every walk of life. They were black, white and every color in between. They were old, young or too young to look that old. They were mostly exhausted, forlorn or anxious, much like the country at the time.

The book doesn't have much prose in it since the complete story is told by these portraits, proving once again the age old adage, "a picture is worth a thousand words."

The book made me wonder about how different the collective story would have been had Sarah taken these portraits in a dive bar in Los Angeles, San Francisco or Dallas. How about London, Madrid or Tel Aviv What would have the common theme been?

The book has definitely renewed my respect for portrait photography and the simplicity of storytelling that Stolfa does so well. Definitely worth checking out.

2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Blown Away, February 14, 2010

By 

Shawn Huber "Shawn" (Pennsylvania) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Regulars (Hardcover)

I am not a huge portrait fan, but this book blew me away. The emotions of the subjects along with the beautiful lighting made this a great collection of portraits portraying everyday people. Sarah Stolfa did an amazing job on these pieces, and I would love to see more books published with her work.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a must for all portrait photographers or those who simply appreciate good photography..., May 15, 2010

By 

ninamit (Philadelphia, PA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Regulars (Hardcover)

Sarah Stolfa is a talented photographer who captures intimate moments within a rarely explored environment. Anyone who appreciates good photography will enjoy this book. It is a must for all photography book libraries.