102 PUBLISHERS WEEKLY FEBRUARY 2, 2026
A Natural History of the Studio William Kentridge. Grove, $30 (224p) ISBN 978-0-8021-6725-5 These enlightening if sometimes arcane essays, originally delivered as part of the Oxford University Slade Lecture series, frame the artist’s studio as a site where “fragments” of the world are “rearranged and sent back out in the world” as art. Multimedia artist Kentridge ( Waiting for the Sibyl ) “reverse-engineers” how he made such projects as “Triumphs and Laments,” a frieze depicting heroes and villains from Roman history on the embankment wall of the Tiber River. He describes collecting sample photos, drawing sketches that used the “lines and margins of the page” to “approximate the lines of the traver- tine blocks on the wall,” and ordering and reordering the cut-outs in the studio. Also discussed are the challenges of translating artwork from the studio into the real world— after realizing there was more space on the Roman wall than he’d accounted for, he used a blank square to symbolize gaps in the historical record, captioning it “That which I do not remember.” Throughout, the author explores how art frequently turns on such shifts and surprises, as one discards the “perfect” original idea and embraces what arises through craft and improvisation. While some entries meander, Kentridge’s blow-by- blow account of the artistic process is frank, unromanticized, and often moving, as when he speaks of his “sol- itary conversation with the drawing as it emerges.” Art scholars and students will be rapt. (Apr.) Won’t Back Down: Heartland Rock and the Fight for America Erin Osmon. Norton, $31.99 (352p) ISBN 978-1-324-05137-4 Politics rather than geography is the defining feature of heartland rock, contends this thorough history from music journalist Osmon ( Jason Molina ). The genre originally known as “working class rock” emerged in the 1970s, as artists churned out songs featuring “factory workers, farmers, the American dream,
underdogs, [and] the open road” amid a period of social unease. Osmon highlights the careers of Tom Petty, John Mellencamp, Bob Seger, and Bruce Springsteen, focusing on their political leanings and efforts to establish Farm Aid and other benefit concerts. She also explores how their songs have been misinter- preted by popular culture, with tracks like Petty’s “I Won’t Back Down” harnessed by politicians eager to “inject a working-class subtext” into campaigns, and Springsteen’s “Born in the USA,” written about the plight of a Vietnam veteran, adopted as an anthem of uncritical patriotism. Despite that—and the fact that the genre has been used in the Trump era as the “soundtrack of insidious white grievance”—Osmon makes a strong case for its enduring legacy, noting how more recent bands harnessed its “against-the-odds moxie” to speak for “the 99 percent.” Spotlighting a broad range of famous and lesser-known artists, this is a robust assessment of a quintessen- tially American genre. (Apr.) Who’s the Favorite? The Loving, Messy Realities of Sibling Relationships Catherine Carr. Harper, $30 (336p) ISBN 978-0-06-343691-6 Relatively podcaster Carr mixes research, cultural criticism, and per- sonal anecdotes for this informative debut study of the complexities of sibling relationships. Driven to explore the topic by her family history—as children, she and her old sister were separated from their youngest sister after their parents split—Carr finds that sibling relationships are among the least scrutinized by researchers, despite frequently being the most enduring ties of one’s life. She explores whether birth order influences one’s personality (possibly, though effects are tough to untangle “from the kaleidoscope of other forces at play”); how assigned roles—golden child, clown—shape personality (labels can be locked into place during child- hood thanks to comparisons between siblings, sometimes “casting a shadow
over relationships” into adulthood); and why siblings can have vastly differ- ent perceptions of the same formative event. Carr also digs into research showing that older siblings can exert as much influence on younger siblings as parents, and offers a sensitive if brief chapter on how half- and step-siblings navigate the challenges of building a family without shared lore and history. Carr keeps the pace brisk by leavening research-heavy passages with chatty, vivid anecdotes—both her own and those gleaned from her podcast. The result is a thought-provoking, expansive look at an important but understudied familial bond. (Apr.) Laika: The Magic Behind a Stop- Motion Dream Factory Ozzy Inguanzo. Rizzoli, $45 (240p) ISBN 978-0-7893-4613-1 Screenwriter Inguanzo ( Ghostbusters ) celebrates the 20th anniversary of the Portland, Ore.–based Laika Studios with an eye-catching account of the making of its stop-motion films, including the upcoming Wildwood . Founded by Travis Knight, a former animator seeking “a new way for- ward” for the declining industry, the studio gained recognition with the 2009 film Coraline , which earned Oscar and BAFTA nominations. Readers are treated to the concept art and storyboards that typically feature in books about animated movies. But Inguanzo also unpacks in fascinating detail the complicated production process of Laika films, including creating the right props: convincingly faded photos in ParaNorman , flowers filling a night garden in Coraline , an adventurer’s collection of exotic oddi- ties in Missing Link . Elsewhere, he explores the studio’s technical innova- tions, such as the Rapid Prototype 3D printing system, which animators use to create facial expressions for stop- motion models. Interspersed with vivid photos of the production process and interviews with editors, animators, model makers, and designers, it makes for an intriguing love letter to an arduous but rewarding artistic medium. This is a treasure trove for animation buffs. (Mar.)
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