My Adventures as an Illustrator: The Definitive Edition

This book is an extremely intimate and detailed account of Norman Rockwell's life. It has many, many illustrations that bring alive many of the points Rockwell, his son, and his grand daughter all seek to make. I learned a great deal about on of my favorite artists and illustrators. It is fascinating, full of very personal anecdotes and very revealing as to life and experiences of this incredibly talented man and his journey. Any aficionado of Rockwell, illustration, art, history or culture will absolutely love this account! While I have no status in art or illustration, I recommend this book without any reservation whatsoever.

I have always admired Norman Rockwell's work, so I was delighted to see his autobiography listed. It is a long book, but I read it very quickly. My only complaint is that due to its size and weight, I could not read it in bed! I did use my book pillow to read it in the living room, however. It is a superb book and well worth reading. The illustrations are great! It is well worth the price.

I love this book! Wonderful book about Norman Rockwell's life, told as if he was sitting across from you. The illustrations are wonderful, following his life story. Great book to add to your Rockwell collection!

This is one of the most enjoyable autobiographies I've read. Norman actually dictated this into a dictaphone in the early sixties and his son turned it into book form. Many many illustrations and cartoons. I was surprised at Rockwell's early life, especially after he got established. Not the staid, middle class artist one imagines but something of a scamp. He certainly fit the image of the roaring 20s. But he also overcame many obstacles both growing up and later in life. His amount of self-doubt about his work was also surprising. Although the book is over 500 pages, it is printed on heavy paper and the reading flows easily. Loved it!

Norman Rockwell certainly led a fascinating life. . . and he tells it well in his semi-autobiographical book. (His life story was dictated for his son, who then evidently worked it into shape for publication.) Many words come to mind to describe Rockwell after reading this book: kind, generous, impulsive, self-doubting, hard-working, perfectionist, self-effacing, conflict-avoiding, authentic. And a real raconteur. Rockwell can spin a great tale, whether describing his models, his trips to Europe, his interactions with local townspeople or fellow artists. Everything in the book is readable, informative, and yes, fascinating. I had only one serious complaint about the whole work: it really shows only one side of the man--his artistic life. Clearly, his work was his life to a great extent. And certainly, the mores of the late 1950s did not encourage sharing all of one's darkest secrets--like his second wife Mary's alcoholism or psychiatric problems (mentioned only by his granddaughter in her Introduction). But his first two wives barely appear anywhere in the 485 pages. His three sons merit only a reference or two, and then recede as well. Friends, other than fellow artists and models, are few and far in between. The Great Depression is never once mentioned. Other than Rockwell's work to get the Four Freedoms painted and published, World War II slides by as well. What was Rockwell thinking when he heard the news of Pearl Harbor? Was his marriage to Mary a happy one? Why did the family move from Arlington, VT to Stockbridge, MA? What, if anything, did Rockwell ever do together with his sons? These are not just incidental points--they go to the heart of what made Rockwell what he was. And you won't find any of those answers anywhere in this tome. Thus, I feel that I still know only half the man. On its own merits, and subject to the above limitations, Rockwell's book is still very much worth reading. As I've mentioned, Rockwell was a real raconteur, and his tales, mostly humorous, are all enjoyable. Rockwell also had a gift for turning a homespun phrase--they litter almost every page. "Their faces were the color of warm pistachio ice cream." A painting idea was going to be a real good one "Until one day it vanished like a puff of smoke on a windy morning." "I watched the sunrise firing the river between the dark wall of houses on either bank. It looked like a scarlet lizard slithering in a coal bin." You get the idea. I enjoyed reading it all. So you may still not know who Norman Rockwell really was, or what really made him tick after reading this book, but you can't come away from even this partial portrait (pardon the expression) without a great deal of admiration and affection for one of America's greatest illustrators.

From my earliest childhood memories as an artist my hero was always Norman Rockwell. Of course we all admired the Masters of Art from the past but there was something about Norman Rockwell, that was real, he was alive and walking on our soil now...not from the past. He painted American people that we were familiar with from the schools, grocery stores, postmen, policemen, families gathered around the table, they were like our families, we knew them. This amazing compilation from the actual Rockwell family is a treasure. We were so excited to add it to our Rockwell art book library we pre-ordered with great anticipation and it did not disappoint when it arrived. Artist are visual people so some may have wanted more copies of his art but that is available everywhere. To read 'actual' words he said and situations around his creations by his son Thomas and granddaughter Abigail that were there with 'Pop' living through all of this while the history was being made is....priceless. This 3.4 pound book is carefully and thoughtfully designed with heartfelt words that an artist can identify with themselves. It wasn't easy for Mr. Rockwell, he worked very hard to accomplish every step of his career. Recommend any artist, or someone that loved his work, to take time to actually READ the words about him and not expect to know the truth just by looking at the photos. WOW...thank you Tom and Abigail for sharing 'Pop' with the world. Blessings for all...

When I found references to this book in a book about Leyendecker, I knew this book was special. It seems to be a biography but really it tells you about the illustration business from Rockwell's historical perspective. That means there is not as much personal information as there is his experience with commercial art in America in the early 20th century. Rockwell was successful and renowned as an illustrator because he tried to be just that. He tells you his struggles with the perception of being outdated in a time of expressive modern art. If you are an art student with your own struggles then you will find a lot of information in this book. But, if you are looking for gossip then not so much. That does not mean the book is fact. Rockwell warns you that it is how he remembers it not necessarily how it was. As an amateur artist I learned a lot from this book and I recommend it highly.

It is a big book. But am enjoying it thoroughly. Laughs throughout and have read several of them to friends and family.

Ok

C’est l’histoire complète de ce peintre incroyable, racontée par son fils. Un Beau livre, magnifiquement illustrée. J’ai eu un grand plaisir à le lire. Un livre de collection. Merci ! Robert Payer

Packed with stunning images of his paintings. Well written, entertaining and full of fascinating insights into the artist’s life.

I was pleasantly surprised and delighted by this book. I had vacillated for ages about buying it as I already owned a fairly good volume about Rockwell's life and work and was unsure if I needed this one, especially since this autobiographical work had been rather slated for what it left out about his personal life when it first came out. However this turned out to be a delight. The book itself is beautifully presented, printed on heavy paper and full of illustrations that are well reproduced, which makes it a joy to view and handle. There is also a lot of it - at 5cm thick and 535 pages it won't fit through the letter box - and I had expected it to be a book I dipped into every so often. Instead I found it so absorbing that I found it difficult to put down. I had expected this to be rather anodyne and was surprised by the depth it contained. The man it revealed was an obsessive, driven and dedicated artist who was thoughtful, insecure, shrewd and surprisingly waspish. (Not what I expected.) Considering he worked non-stop, seven days a week there is far more about his work than his private life but the foreword and afterword by his relatives give more insight into this. As a painter myself I revelled in the details of his philosophy and working methods, was pleased by his honesty about his struggles and it really raised my opinion of him and his work. (Like many I had tended to see his work as superficial kitsch.) I was especially pleased with the illustrations which amplify the text so little known sketches, studies and paintings are placed to alongside what he was talking about. (Don't expect to see all his best known work here, you will need one of the many other good books available for that.) I can honestly say that this definitive edition is worthy of the title. It is a pleasure to own, a great read and has entirely altered my view of Rockwell as a painter and as a person. Worth every penny.

Just received my copy of Norman Rockwell Definitive Edition, it really a beautiful book. Smaller in size than I expected, but still is worth adding to my library. If there is one bad thing to say is the images seem small and less white space around them would allow the images become a bit larger. Also I was expecting a book of his work, its quite copy heavy.