I learned a lot about Martha's Graham. CHOR ESR AP. H. E!R. And her ideas how she corporated this into her dancing. She grew up in Pittsburgh, but her family was sick. So they moved to santa barbara. There she the third three sisters had a very interesting life. Her father took her to recital. One time based on d e n I s h o r a school. She was very fascinated by this because they took oriental and Indian type dancing and did it through a modern way of moveman.. This was like in the nineteen tens. She went to school through this. When she graduated from high school in l a in los angeles. She also taught dance as well. And but eventually she left this group and started her own ideas and thoughts. They also talked about the Ballet from russia. This was in the twenties when things were starting to change. Martha did a lot of pioneering ideas. She also taught at the cornish school here in seattle. She introduced modern forms. She started the program at BENNIN GTO N college in Vermont. For the summer sessions and she did a lot of news ideas there and it was very interesting to learn how much you did there. I like how she also did music as well to match her types of dancing. It was really hard for them because they had to get grants. They had very little money but they produced some amazing dancing. She was very revolutionary and thinking how the body would move. She also didn't believe in marriage. She did get married at one point and then divorced. She was just a very happy person when she was dancing. She also made her own clothes too which was pretty interesting. It's interesting how they could look at dancing from the Orient and India and make it modern. The person who wrote this book is amazing too because she understands dance. And she worked with the village voice going to different programs.

In "Errand into the Maze: The Life and Works of Martha Graham," Deborah Jowitt delivers an extensive look at Martha Graham's life and career. Jowitt goes into exhaustive detail about Graham's growth and influence in the dance world. She goes through each of Graham's creative dance moments, and she explains Graham's work ethic, thought process, and how the dance fits into the era in which the dance takes place. She places Graham within the specific moment by quoting from contemporaneous reviews that speak of Graham's talent. By doing so, we not only understand Graham as a major figure in the dance world, but we see how her dances were often shaped by world events (the depression and WWII for example). Even if a reader is not a dance person per se, they will still understand Graham's importance.

Jowitt gives us a complicated Graham who's prickly, difficult, and
determined; this is a woman who worked into her nineties. Jowitt does not go the hagiographic route; she allows for the complications and the hypocrisies in Graham's character to shine through. This makes Graham a more relatable and appealing subject. This is a must have book for lovers of dance, social/art commentary, and first rate biographies.

This is quite a scholarly analysis of Martha Graham's biography and choreography. It is meticulously researched, but may be a little over the heads of readers who are not already versed in dance theory and practice. It will definitely be a useful reference for academics.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to review a temporary digital ARC in exchange for an unbiased review.

As a dancer, this book about the legendary Martha Graham is a fascinating read! Well researched and engaging, this book is a great look at one of the legends of dance.

This book looked very interesting and I looked forward to reading it but unfortunately the time ran out before I could finish it. I will try to find a copy in the library and if so I will come back and update this entry to include a proper review of the book. As a former dancer and student of the Martha Graham technique, I am very much interested in the book. The cover is well designed and the author certainly qualified to write on this topic. On that basis I am giving the book four stars.

Thank you NetGalley & publisher for this eARC.

Wow first of all, when I read this book, it made me realize that I only know so little about modern dance. This is a very well researched book on Martha Graham and mostly heavy on her 52 years work as an iconic dancer. I never knew about her until I read this book and made me curious to search for her more.

Definitely inspiring.

Engaging biography. The ingenuity of Martha shined right through the pages of this book, but it did not skim past the challenges and heartbreak. Dance biographies aren’t for everyone, but as a modern dancer for 15 years, I loved this!

This book thoroughly covers the life and accomplishments of a very interesting and impressive woman. It is obvious from the beginning that this book has been well researched, but be prepared for it to read more like an academic thesis. For me it lacked the voice and engagement I typically enjoy in biographies. If you prefer the more academic style of biographies, this one might be for you.

One does not need to have ever danced a moment in their day to appreciate the depth given to the art of dance in this book.

A combination of multiple creative forms, Deborah Jowitt gives life to Martha Graham, an American dancer famous for re-inventing, working within, and creating new and inspiring pieces within her craft. From what I gathered from reading it, the overall goal of the book is to breathe a new story about Graham's life, art, and career into the pages of this modern story. I am a big fan of biographies of any kind, so of course I wasn't even slightly opposed to getting to read this in-depth story about an inspiring dancer. I especially enjoy reading from genres or areas of study that I am not particularly knowledgeable about, which made this book all the more fitting for a selection to read. The author appeared to pull from a variety of sources and studies in order to give the most factual base to the story, which I greatly enjoyed reading about. One comment I would make on that base, however, is I noticed that the author tended to make some hypothetical assumptions about the life of Graham without quite elaborating. Since I presume that Jowitt is fairly knowledgeable, I think that it is perfectly within her capabilities to expand on the hypotheticals she poses to create a broader story, one that expands outside of the facts and the information, and takes a new approach on Graham's life.

Graham's life is covered in a way that I would not have expected, from personal to professional, with explicit details on the notable stories of her time. Jowitt's approach to the topic, taking a chronological and descriptive path, develops a story that is certainly interesting and investing. I think that this book is perfect for those looking to get more knowledgeable in a topic in which they are not used to, and who are willing to sit through the information in order to gain something out of the experience

I grew up dancing so of course this caught me eye. I could not finish this book unfortunately. This is a very academic review of her work, therefore I wouldn’t say it had elements that were exciting or that drew me in. If you work in the dance world, I think this would be a great resource of history on the modernization of dance. Thank you Netgalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I would like to thank Farrar, Straus and Giroux , as well as Net Galley for the opportunity to read this book as an ARC. This is a well written and well researched book about Martha Graham and her life in dance. It starts with her early life and continues through her training and her life a a dancer and as a choreographer. It goes into much detail about her dances and , the music used , the people involved and the costumes used. I fear that I am not enough of a dance enthusiast to fully appreciate this book. I was hoping to read more of her personal life, and her feelings. It is well written, and full of detail. It is just not my style. I never felt that I got a chance to know the person behind the dance.

When I started to read this book, I knew very little about modern dance. I have recently grown interested in the world of dance and I thought a book about one of the most famous choreographers would be a good start. I’ll be honest, I had never heard of Martha Graham before starting this book but this book guided me through her life with amazing details. The book is heavily focused on the parts of Martha Graham’s life when she choreographs her works. At first, I felt as though the author focused greatly on these aspects of her life, and provided few details about her personal life. However, as I read this book, I began to see how her personal life can be seen through the dances she creates. Not to mention that a majority Martha Graham’s life was spent on stage and teaching others her dance techniques. I also enjoyed how we got to see Martha’s dances connected to ancient figures across time. Providing readers with a glimpse of modern forms of dancing combined with ancient works. It allows readers to see the influence these ancient stories had on people throughout history and how their contents can be retold in so many unique ways.

Since Martha lived such a long and interesting life, her works have touched many people over the years. The author included personal stories from those who met Martha Graham and worked alongside her. This book is also accessible for those who are not familiar with the world of dance or ancient myths. The author provides contexts surrounding inspirations of Martha’s dances. As someone who is always interested in learning about new subjects, I was happy when this book provided some of Martha Graham’s sources that she used to create some of her most famous dances. I am very interested to study these stories and myths that inspired these beautiful pieces of dance.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for providing me an advanced reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review.

I have been reading articles by Deborah Jowitt all of my dancing life, all 52 years of it! I was so excited to see this book coming out next year.. ERRAND INTO THE MAZE, The Life and Works of Martha Graham..... on Netgalley. It was everything I thought it would be and better. A look at the choreographic life of Martha Graham, I got to revisit her studio and the many teachers who taught me the Graham Technique in Modern Dance. I knew many of the very intense stories Ms. Jowitt mentions in the book, and I never tire of hearing them! Martha Graham was truly an icon…a genius! And Jowitt’s indelible descriptions of the way she created her work leaves me honestly, in awe. This is a remarkable book which leaves an indelible impression of the artist and her life! Thank you NetGalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux Publishing. I can't wait to share the information and this book with my Dance History students!!