A photobook was one of the first things that really got me interested in the stories that they told. When I saw this particular volume. It interested me in two parts. I only recently (in the last few years) found out that the Roma (colloquially known as gypsies) originated in India! So when I saw a book that would give me more insight into the community at large, my interest was piqued. The second part was obviously the pictures themselves.
This is a decent collection. The author provides an in-depth background about the people she included, the different subgroups and how they came to be. Their histories were probably the most fascinating thing about the book as a whole.
I was not as awed by the pictures as I hoped to be. Some of them told quite a unique tale, whether happy or not. Others were not as engaging. I might have set my hopes too high, but I think it would have helped to have the notes that provide context next to the photos instead of being at the end of the book. This is the late 1980s and early 1990s California, and that in itself was interesting. The author does not pass judgement on anything she captures. She just narrates it as is, with the facts at the end.
This is a book I would recommend to people who might be looking to learn something new about other cultures.
I received an ARC thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, but the review is entirely based on my own reading experience.

This is a wonderful book. I am so glad I found it. It is packed fullof culture and wonderful emotive pictures. The book focuses on the romany culture looking at family life within each clan. I just loved the section at the start explaining the difference of each clan and how they live there lives. I found it so fascinating. The layout of the book was wonderfully simple but very effective. The only slight issue I had was that the explanation for each each image was after the pictures. I full understood why the author did this. It was so your sole focus was on each image and so that the images show their full impact and your mind then likes to work out the pictures before you actually read about it. I loved this book so much and I would recommend this book to all those who love learning about different cultures and For those who have a keen interest in the power of black and white photography as they were some stunning powerful images. 

So much praise goes out to the author and publishing team for bringing together this amazing collection of photography from a very fascinating culture which I loved learning about and I'm sure you will too.

The above review has already been placed on goodreads, waterstones, Google books, Barnes&noble, kobo and amazon UK where found and my blog https://ladyreading365.wixsite.com/website/post/hidden-by-cristina-salvador-klenz-ibpa-independant-published-4-stars either under my name or ladyreading365 or lady Reading365 or ladyc reading

Excellent and brilliant work, really appreciated it. I can highly recommend it, Roma and US is not something we think about, but I am glad CSK made these piece of work. It's shocking at times to read about it, but Klenz does it with such care and a distinct lack of judgement.

Beautiful photography. Perfect for a coffee table but also perfect to really get to know a culture within a culture. Beautifully done.

It was an amazing experience seeing the hidden rich world of Roma through portraits and exploring their interesting background history which is unknown to most.

A beautiful photography book by Cristina Salvador Klenz documenting the everyday lives of Romani people in the US. It gives some information on both the global history of Romani people and also on the specifics of the community in the US. I'd love to know more specific information or narration from the people presented in the book, as I think it'd have been interesting for the storytelling the book is doing, and it'd would have add complexity and uniqueness. Still the photographs are beautiful and haunting in the best way possible.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

The photography in this book was stunning and the information given at the beginning of the book provides a good background on Roma culture. However, I was there was a little more information included each actual photograph giving us background and telling more of the story of the specific people photographed. I felt like I left this book knowing a bit more about Roma culture in general, but very little about the specific people who opened their lives up to be documented. The photography truly was beautiful and that alone made this book a worthwhile read!

Hidden calls out America’s general ignorance of Romani culture. Before this book, I, too, thought it was a lifestyle instead of an ethnic identity, and I didn’t know that “gypsy” was derogatory. I am thankful that this book was able to educate me about Romani culture. I think that the goal of the author was to create awareness of the Roma people and their unique origins and culture. While the text certainly achieves this, I do not believe the photos have the desired effect.

Many of the photos did not portray the culture or the particular people being photographed in the best light. The photos perfectly captured emotions but they were often of despair, sadness, anger or exhaustion. If some of these photos in this book were of my family, I would not be pleased. The notes provided separately at the end of the book as opposed to captions directly below their corresponding photos was cumbersome.

Trigger warning:

- children smoking
- children drinking
- child holding a gun
- corporal punishment
- pig being gutted with bare hands


Thank you NetGalley and Brown Paper Press for providing this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Hidden, Life with California's Roma Families is an amazing array of black and white photographs by photojournalist Cristina Salvador Klenz. They're made all the more amazing because she was able to obtain the trust of many of the Roma families in California which led to these families giving her permission to photograph them.
She gives us a glimpse into the Romini people's lives and traditions in both prose and images. The Romini people are an ethnic minority who're fairly unfamiliar to most Americans yet many of us still make assumptions about them as well as choosing to believe old, negative stereotypes. And so they're often met with discrimination by their fellow Americans. This book gives us a rare glimpse into their real lives and culture and it doesn't look anything like the reality shows on TV.
Ms Klenz started this project in 1990 and went on to spend many years documenting different families from varying nations of Romani.

This is a beautiful selection of black and white photographs taken in the 1990s of the Roma community in America. The author really captures the different aspects and stages of life.

I would have liked more detail about the people depicted, which is why I have only given 4 stars. Many of the pictures left me with lots of questions about what was going on, which was only explained very briefly in the notes.

A very interesting and beautiful photo book of the Roma people. The author/photographer also included information about the Roma people that isn’t common knowledge. An inside look that is done respectfully and truly seems a labor of love.

This is a stunning collection of black and white photographs featuring Roma people, more commonly known as Gypsies. These photos were taken in the early 1990’s in California. The introduction to the book gives a brief history of how these people came to be outcasts and nomads for so many generations.

The photos are compelling and the history is fascinating. This is one that will stick with me.

Thanks to @netgalley and @brownpaperpress for an advanced copy of this book. It will be released on 4/5/22.

Visual Storytelling at its Best
I particularly enjoyed this informative, illustrated account of the Roma people.
Sensitively written, we learn about their Indian origin, exodus during repeated invasions by Mahmud Ghazni during the 11th century AD, to the trials and tribulations including being subjected to genocide under the Nazis in 1933;
'By the end of World War II, the Nazis had murdered between 1 million and 1.5 million Romanies - representing some 70 percent of Europe's Romani population at the time.'
The book goes into detail about different groups within Roma society, which is more diverse than I assumed.
The photography captures the everyday lives of a community of Roma people living in the US. Laughing, singing, marrying, giving birth, raising children. Some of the images have captions that explain the stories behind the people and scenes featured in the photography.
This is a thought-provoking book that gives voice to a marginalized group of people.

Thank you netgalley and The Publisher for e ARC,
I loved the black and White Photography concept, I don't know but I really like the background information about each photos
Some of the shots are are breathtaking, my favourite is mother and daughter one, their eyes were speaking to me
If you like photography and sociology then you should check it out

The author takes us on a journey to discover the Romany (Gypsy) families in California.You will not see the typical caravans with horses that are common in Europe, but you will see ordinary people in a neighborhood. The author tells of her first meeting with gypsies in 1984 in Portugal and they lived in shacks, were malnourished and had no medical attention.
The gypsies sad and tragic history from their Indian origins, Balkan fortune tellers and circus performers to their ostracism in Europe to the tragic genocide of Jews and Gypsies in the 1930's and 40's is recounted.
The gypsies who settled in California are grouped into the
1. Churara who make metal cooking utensils, knives and engage in horse trading.
2. The Kalderash who are split into subgroups that speak Russian, Greek, Spanish and Romani.
3. The Ludar are Romanian gypsies that make and sell furniture out of a mobile home park.
4. The Machvaya are very traditional, wealthy and powerful gypsies who play as professional musicians. The author photographed them as they participated in weddings to gain their trust.
5. The Xoraxay are the most recent group of gypsies who immigrated from Serbia to Chile, then Mexico to California who took the surname Flores.

Cristina, the author gained their trust by photographing them in weddings and then showing these pictures to the various gypsy groups she interviewed.
You will find these pictures very interesting as they show people in their true colors - sadness, joy, fear and happiness. It is like visiting another country without having to travel - but these people are here i.our midst.

This is a stunning book of black and white photography by photojournalist Cristina Salvador Klenz documenting the life of Romani gypsies in the USA. Starting with an informative forward Klenz tells of her experience of taking the photographs over many years and gaining access to the communities. She also gives information on the global history of Romnies and what it is like to be Romani in the USA today (I was shocked to discover the average life expectancy is only between 48-55 years old).

The photographs themselves are of everyday life and include some beautiful shots. I especially liked photos of scenes that could be seen in most households such as family gatherings, small girls playing dress up in their mothers high heels etc. Some photographs were fairly unexpected such as of twelve year old brides and a very young girl smoking while holding on to a toy doll while under the watch of an older relative. Overall the photographs really did provide an insight though into every day life from birth to death and everything in between.

I enjoyed reading the photo notes at the end and definitely think readers benefit from knowing the extra detail to each photograph which provides a whole other layer to the book.

A fantastic book for anyone interesting in photography, sociology or anthropology.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars

What a wonderful idea for a book. I admit I was completely ignorant of Romani culture, which is why I chose to read this book.

A lot of the photos are wonderful - candid, intimate, full of life and I absolutely love the black & white. Although I most definitely could have gone without the photo of the pig being gutted.

There were a couple of photos depicting very young children smoking. You couldn't be blamed if you assumed this must be acceptable within the culture, as it's hard to judge as each photo only comes with a caption of 2 or 3 words. Until you reach the very end of all the photos and there is more information given for most.

This choice of layout bothered me, as the last thing a reader wants to do is have to flip back and forth to find the corresponding photo again.

Cristina Salvador Klenz knows exactly how to tell a story with images. These photographs, each told such an interesting story, whether they be stories from the past or stories of traditions, it was all very clearly depicted in these photographs.

I picked up this book expecting a nice photography book to peruse, but instead my intention to skim the introduction o my way to the photos was scuttled when I was immediately pulled it. I was entranced by the history and diversity of this people who are so maligned and persecuted. Chased around the world and still clinging tightly to their families and community. I loved this book so much for both its writing and photography. The photos are spare and piercing, I wish I could see so many more!

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I will post a review on Instagram closer to the time of publication in April 2022.

This is an educational book about Romani people from the perspective of someone who witnessed them for the first time in Europe. The pictures are black and white and gorgeous. The story at the beginning is also beautiful, Romani families are living all around us but still I knew nothing of them. Im so excited I was able to become a bit more cultured. Thank you NETGALLEY!