First of all, if you are not familiar with Pastoureau's books (originally published in French), you might think it is silly to have a book dedicated to a color. I can assure you, that's not what these books (Blue, Green, Red, and Black) are about. These books are not only a historical review of a color's use through the millennia, but they are also a psychological and sociological examination of how the color came to represent what it does/did in different epochs. And then, they are BEAUTIFULLY illustrated with gorgeous prints on high-quality, heavy, glossy paper. Yes, people call them "coffee-table" books, and they can certainly fulfill that role, but they (including "Blue," here) are so very much more than that.
There's a lot of scholarship in these pages. Pastoureau has been examining color and its impact on society for a long time, and if you go back and look at the reviews from esteemed sources, they will reflect the admiration for this project the author has undertaken. As we work our way through any of the colors, we see an unfolding story over the centuries of how the color has been used, interpreted, exploited, and ultimately, integrated into the human psyche. Its as scholarly a set of works as it is fascinating and unusual.
Here's something really cool. When Pasteroureau's works were reviewed a couple of years ago in The New York Review of Books, everyone went out to purchase them, and they went out of print. We saw skyrocketing prices for used copies in English, often topping $200. The books are now back in print, and, as a HUGE and unexpected bonus, the Blue and the Red volumes are actually printed in France. If you've never had the pleasure of interacting with a publication printed in a French printing house on superb paper, you're in for a treat. (Ironically, the Blue and Red volumes, both printed in France, are the least expensive of the bunch, which is completely unexpected.) They are lavish and gorgeous, and shockingly inexpensive for what they are. I see that the inside makes reference the to newly built Louvre-Lens (which is in the city of Lens, just south of the Belgian border), and I wonder if the reprinting of these volumes by Princeton Press had something to do with the museum, perhaps an exhibition, or perhaps just a way to get these back into circulation. And, ironically again, I was just recently at Louvre-Lens in January 2018, and I did not see these books in their gift shop, so I'm not really sure of the connection, but all I can say is that I'm delighted to see them back in print, and printed IN FRANCE! (Green, although extremely well done, is printed in China.)
So, if you have any interest in art, or just want to investigate an unusual topic, I say "RUN, don't walk" to pick up, at a minimum, "Blue," "Red," "Green," and "Black" before they go out of print. Once you get looking at them, you won't regret it. Truly beautiful, unusual, fun, educational and scholarly all at the same time.
Note: The Other Volumes in the "Set"
Red: The History of a Color
Black: The History of a Color
Green: The History of a Color
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Reviews with images
Everything was great until I removed the plastic
Shipped faster than expected. Sadly, the book had this awful cut in the jacket and the front page, a very deep cut.
Top reviews from the United States
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Reviewed in the United States on April 23, 2018
Reviewed in the United States on August 19, 2023
Reviewed in the United States on December 1, 2020
Reviewed in the United States on November 19, 2019
Reviewed in the United States on July 25, 2020
Everything was great until I removed the plastic
Reviewed in the United States on July 25, 2020
Shipped faster than expected. Sadly, the book had this awful cut in the jacket and the front page, a very deep cut.
Reviewed in the United States on July 25, 2020
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Top reviews from other countries
Grasy Freitas
Melhor do que eu esperava
Reviewed in Brazil on September 3, 2021
Grasy Freitas
Reviewed in Brazil on September 3, 2021
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Jorgensen
Great book. Purchased as "new" but clearly not.
Reviewed in Germany on July 28, 2023Vasilena Dimcheva Vasileva
Toda la colección sobre los colores, escrita por Pastoureau es fantástica!
Reviewed in Spain on December 8, 2021