Learning to See - by Elise Hooper (Paperback)

About the Book

Book Synopsis

If you liked Sold on a Monday and Beautiful Exiles, you'll love this novel about strong-willed trailblazing photographer, Dorothea Lange, whose fame grew during World War II and the Great Depression.

"Hooper excels at humanizing giants....seamlessly weaving together the time, places and people in Lange's life...For photo buffs and others familiar with her vast body of work, reading the book will be like discovering the secret backstory of someone they thought they knew." --The Washington Post

In 1918, a fearless twenty-two-year old arrives in bohemian San Francisco from the Northeast, determined to make her own way as an independent woman. Renaming herself Dorothea Lange she is soon the celebrated owner of the city's most prestigious and stylish portrait studio and wife of the talented but volatile painter, Maynard Dixon.

By the early 1930s, as America's economy collapses, her marriage founders and Dorothea must find ways to support her two young sons single-handedly. Determined to expose the horrific conditions of the nation's poor, she takes to the road with her camera, creating images that inspire, reform, and define the era. And when the United States enters World War II, Dorothea chooses to confront another injustice--the incarceration of thousands of innocent Japanese Americans.

At a time when women were supposed to keep the home fires burning, Dorothea Lange, creator of the most iconic photographs of the 20^th century, dares to be different. But her choices came at a steep price...

From the Back Cover

At a time when women were supposed to keep the home fires burning, Dorothea Lange, creator of the most iconic photographs of the twentieth century, dared to be different. Now, in this riveting new novel by the author of The Other Alcott, we see the world through her eyes . . .

In 1918, a fearless twenty-two-year-old arrives in bohemian San Francisco from the Northeast, determined to make her own way as an independent woman. Renaming herself Dorothea Lange, she is soon the celebrated owner of the city's most prestigious and stylish portrait studio and wife of the talented but volatile painter, Maynard Dixon.

By the early 1930s, as America's economy collapses, her marriage founders and Dorothea must find ways to support her two young sons single-handedly. Determined to expose the horrific conditions of the nation's poor, she takes to the road with her camera, creating images that inspire, reform, and define the era. And when the United States enters World War II, Dorothea chooses to confront another injustice--the incarceration of thousands of innocent Japanese Americans.

Review Quotes

"To read this book is to understand why the women behind Little Women continue to cast a long shadow over our imaginations and dreams. Hooper is a writer to watch!" - Elisabeth Egan, author of A Window Opens

"The Other Alcott, a new novel by Elise Hooper, reimagines the story of Amy March, the spoiled and selfish youngest sister. The character of Amy was based on Alcott's youngest sister, May, and Hooper, who grew up near Alcott's home in Concord and now lives in the Pacific Northwest, found herself wondering what it would be like to be portrayed so negatively by your older sis. Hooper's novel explores Amy's artistic pursuits, as she studies in Boston, Paris, Rome, and London, as well as the complicated tangle of love and tension involved in sibling dynamics." - Boston Globe

"More than ever, we need books like this - in celebration of a woman overlooked by history, one whose story helps shed light on our own contemporary search for love, identity and meaning." - Tara Conklin, New York Times bestselling author of The House Girl

"In The Other Alcott, Elise Hooper has crafted a sweeping and deeply personal tale of a young woman's struggle to emerge out of her famous sister's shadow and define herself as an artist and an independent adventurer. You will never look at Little Women or the Alcott family the same way again." - Laurie Lico Albanese, author of Stolen Beauty

"Hooper does an admirable job at condensing a multitude of decades and careers into an immensely entertaining and page-turning novel." - Historical Novel Society

"Hooper excels at humanizing giants....seamlessly weaving together the time, places and people in Lange's life...For photo buffs and others familiar with her vast body of work, reading the book will be like discovering the secret backstory of someone they thought they knew." - Washington Post

"Historical fiction fans will gobble up Hooper's novel and be left with the satisfied feeling that they have lived through much of the 20th century with Dorothea Lange." - Publishers Weekly

"A fascinating and sometimes surprising introduction to a woman known for her iconic photographs but not her eventful life." - Library Journal

"Gorgeously written with exquisite historical detail, Learning to See is a fascinating tale of one remarkable woman's life. Told with the same precise prose and terrific nuance as her stunning debut, The Other Alcott, Elise Hooper proves once again that she's a masterful storyteller." - Lisa Duffy, author of The Salt House

"Hooper deftly balances the fascinating historical fabric of the novel with the personal life of its complicated protagonist. What results is a vivid and deep story that will send the reader to the internet seeking more.I give it my highest recommendation." - Erika Robuck, national bestselling author of Fallen Beauty and Hemingway's Girl

"I was quickly captured by Elise Hooper's Learning to See, coming from HarperCollins. Not only did I gain knowledge of Dorothea Lange's life (about which I knew nothing) but Hooper was able to make me see her characters as if I was seeing them through Lange's lens. Not only a stark portrayal of some of our country's less than noble times, but a cautionary tale for today." - Liz Murphy, The Learned Owl Book Shop (Hudson, OH)

"Excellent historical fiction: gritty, factual and heartbreaking tale of Dorthea's transition from society portraiture to photojournalism on American people who suffered the Great Depression, the Midwestern Dustbowl and finally, the WWII internment of citizens who had any percentage of Japanese ancestry. The stories of her family life are sad, but most heartbreaking are the government suppression of her photos as treasonous & un-American." - Karen Bakshoian, Letterpress Books (Portland, ME)

"Elise Hooper's Dorothea Lange is magnetic!...This is a winning novel from the first page." - Devin Murphy, national bestselling author of The Boat Runner and Tiny Americans

"Written with grace, empathy, and bright imagination, LEARNING TO SEE gives us the vivid interior life of a remarkably resilient woman. Dorothea Lange's story is about passion and art, love and family, but also about the sacrifices women make--and have always made--to illuminate the truth of the world." - Danya Kukafka, National Bestselling author of Girl in Snow

"A powerful and timely view of America told through the lens of Dorothea Lange, a fascinating woman whose photographs shone a light on the nation's forgotten and abandoned...Detailed and thoroughly immersive, Learning to See grips the reader and highlights an important period in American history." - Chanel Cleeton, author of Next Year in Havana

"Hooper makes me not only feel for Lange, but also wish I could call her up like her friend, Imogen [Cunningham], and tell her I'm coming over for a visit." - Forbes

"Her adventures illuminate the world of intrepid female artists in the late 1800s, a milieu too little appreciated today [...] The Other Alcott comes alive in its development of the relationship between Louisa and May." - New York Times, Sunday Review of Books