this book features the beautiful woodcut prints of fritz eichenberg who's prints were made popular by their being in the catholic worker. the book also includes essays and interviews with eichenberg as well as other's reflections of him. really wonderful. ( )

This extraordinary book chronicles the career of Fritz Eichenberg, an artist, teacher, author and social activist, whose life bore witness to the significant political, military and social issues of the 20th century. He began his artistic vocation in Germany under Kaiser Wilhelm during World War I; he ended his career in the U.S. as the Berlin Wall fell and the Soviet Union unravelled. He was sympathetic to the Catholic Worker movement (founded by Dorothy Day), and was best known for his artistic contributions to the Catholic Worker magazine.

Like many people, I first encountered Eichenberg in the 1943 illustrated edition of the Bronte sisters (a slipcase set with Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights). His agonized, almost Gothic wood engravings made a deep impression (to coin a phrase) on me. When as an adult I rediscovered his work, I felt I had encountered a dear old friend.

My favourite work of his, however, involves his illustrations for a 1948 edition of The Brothers Karamazov. In particular, he did an unforgettable wood engraving for the Grand Inquisitor scene (see www.tfaoi.com/am/8am/8am295.jpg) that captures the agony of a "new mandarin" come face to face with a silent, uncomplaining Christ. ( )