Good content, disappointing presentation
I bought this as a Christmas present for my mother. Since she makes jewelry for a living, I thought she would find some of the unique Tuareg designs inspiring. In this regard, I think the book is quite good-- there are photographs of many beautiful pieces, and there's good text to go along with them.
However, there are some things about this book that really disappointed me. First, most of the photographs are very low resolution and have been blown up such that there is glaringly obvious pixelation. It looks as if many of the photos were taken with a camera phone. Not surprisingly, the colors in most of the photos are also quite dull, which makes the visual presentation of the jewelry even less effective. I also am not a fan of books that use light text on a dark background in their entirety-- this book does just that.
I understand now that this book was probably published in a very small run, but I still expect much higher quality when I pay nearly $50 for a small book of photographs. Furthermore, obvious pixelation from blowing up images too much is absolutely inexcusable. If you're going to buy this book, understand that its draw is the anthropological aspects of the jewelry and not their visual presentation.
Berbers and Tuaregs
The cover photo of a beautiful antique Berber necklace was carefully and purposefully selected by the author of the book, Helene Hagan, to reflect the Amazigh (Berber) origins of Tuareg culture, identity, and jewelry. The reason for this choice is explained in the book, which also extensively covers Tuareg tales of origins from the south of Morocco, as well as what it means to be an "Amazigh" ("Berber" and "Tuareg" being labels imposed by outsiders.) The book specifically emphasizes the commonality of traditions, language and worldview between "Tuaregs" and "Berbers" who are apparented and all call themselves "Imazighen." (Free Human Beings).
The Kel Tamasheq spoken by Tuaregs of Mali, Niger, and Algeria, and the Tamazight, Tachelhit, Tarifi and Kabyle spoken by Berbers of North Africa are variants of the same language.
The Meaning of Tuareg Jewelry Revealed
This book makes a perfect companion to Art of Being Tuareg. In this book the symbolism of Tuareg jewelry is explored. Excellent examples of Tuareg jewerly are shown. I only regret that the necklace in the cover photo, while Berber, is not Tuareg.
(3 reviews)
