Everything She Touched

Since I saw the cover of this book I felt a sense of melancholy. Ruth Asawa is Japanese-American Nisei (second-generation American) that during WWII felt all the terrifyng fear and experienced for herself the practice of being interned. Ruth had studied art at Black Mountain College, married a white man and continued to make a name for herself in USA. She raised six children, founding a high school dedicated to the arts, or pursuing her own practice independent of the New York art market.

I liked the setting of the book: a mix of prose, quotes by Ruth, photo of her life and her arts.
It has a great impact on me. The discover of new hole life, an amazing artist, a woman who don't want to give up. She gave me a new power, like a fire that grow in my body.

This book is for people who love art, woman history, autobiography and feminism.

I requested this in search of a biography about a great woman and her art-- and I was not disappointed.
As an Asian American woman who grew up in Southern California, I cherished reading and learning more about the epic story of the legendary artist Ruth Asawa. The book itself is beautiful, with photos of Asawa's artworks and family photos. I'd recommend this to anyone win an interest in art, powerful women, and the impact the two has on each other.

I knew nothing about Ruth Asawa or her artwork when I requested this book. It looked interesting and I decided to give it a try.

I am now madly in love with the person Ruth was and will be trying to view everything of her's that I can now. I won't be able to afford any of it, but looking is free, thank goodness!

I think what I love most about her is that she was not just dedicated to her art, she was full of love for all those around her, not just her family, which was six children strong, two of whom were adopted. More evidence of her and her husband's boundless love. Her love for art and children led her to be a HUGE proponent of art in school and put her money and hard work where her mouth was. She literally founded a school of the arts in California, which they named after her in her honor. She has made artwork for all to see and share in as well, fighting for art to be in the civic sphere as well as in the educational one.

Rather than just gushing over Ruth, I will instead just tell you to get this book to learn more about her.

Funny/sad story, while FaceTiming with family, cuz can't visit anyone cuz pandemics suck, I hadn't yet finished the book, but I was going on and on about how awesome Ruth was and everything she did and everything she experienced (Japanese internment camps during WWII, so sad and a huge blight on America), they asked how old she was. The book either wasn't overly clear in the section I was reading or I just missed it, but I admitted I didn't know, so Wiki'd her. And just about cried.

SPOILER WARNING, don't Wiki her if you want NO spoilers.

Yes, this is a story where the MC dies at the end. I was heartbroken. I hadn't gotten to that part yet. Though her end was SOOOOO POETIC and FIT her so PERFECTLY. Depending on how one looks at it, it's either circle of life, or a tad on the morbid side. I go for the touching, circle of life interpretation.

Anywho, this book took FIVE years to research and write and it SHOWS. The personality of Ruth Asawa was front and center, the depth of information in this blew me away. And, to show how the art community is a tight-knit one, her mentor Josef Albers was mentioned with his artwork in the most recent book on art that I had read. It took me longer than I would have liked to make the connection between the man and the painting in the book I just read, but I DID eventually figure it out. I need to be more open to connections like that in what I read!

So, long story short. Should you read this book? I say yes. It is about a fascinating, wonderful person who probably lived a life that most of us can't even begin to imagine. Just learning about what she, and others, went through is important. But then to see how she lived her life with love and generosity instead of bitterness and hate is nothing short of inspiring. She never forgot what happened, but she didn't let it define who she was and how she was going to act.

5, Ruth Asawa is amazing and I wish I had had the opportunity to know her, stars.

My thanks to NetGalley and Chronicle Books for a copy of the eARC to read and review.

Reading this book allowed me ti discover and learn about the incredible artist and important figure that Ruth Asawa was, of whom I bet I wouldn’t have heard about her otherwise. Through this biography I also learned about Japanese culture, a different perspective of WWII and internment, a new artistic movement, and fun facts such as how second-generation Japanese-American people are called (Nisei).

Ruth studied Art in College —which was pretty uncommon for women at that time, especially women of color—, she married a white man —defying anti-miscegenation laws—, and was fundamental to the creation of the San Francisco’s performing arts school. And she accomplished all of this and more while raising SIX children.

This book is ideal for those looking for a biography on a lesser known artist that was key in her time, area and field, who was also an early feminist without even intending to do so, and also like learning about the historical and social context in which all of that happened. And you can tell how much effort was put into this book, because it is impeccably and meticulously researched, as well as it being multimedia, with letters, quotes, and photos complimenting the text.

I received an advanced digital copy of this book from the author, publisher and Netgalley.com. Thanks to all for the opportunity to read and review. The opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Everything She Touched is an insightful biography of one of the most important female sculptors of our time. Ruth Asawa's work is amazing and her story is one of triumph.

5 out of 5 stars. Highly recommended.

Everything She Touched: The Life of Ruth Asawa by Marilyn Chase is a phenomenal work of biography and history (art and United States).

I came to this book because I admire Asawa's art and wanted to learn more about her. I expected to gain some appreciation for who she was but did not expect to be moved to the extent I was. I almost don't know where to begin discussing this book.

Ruth Asawa had a life that tested her at every turn. That is probably true, to some extent, of every life, it is the moments in our lives and how we respond to them that test us and make us who we are. Asawa, however, endured things that could easily have broken her, or made her bitter and hateful, or simply made her shut down. Yet through everything she tended to find a positive way to deal with and move through each ordeal.

I found the entire life story compelling but, because of my interests and old friends, I was particularly moved by her experience of the World War II concentration camps the US government set up to jail (contain) many of its own citizens. The ability to both be present in the moment (school, letter writing on behalf of her father, art instruction) and move into the future (going to teacher's college, a trip to Mexico) shows an amazing degree of strength. To also come out of the experience without a long and abiding hatred of all things American is more than I think I would have been able to do. To then work toward making the world a better place for future generations is the stuff of movies.

Chase writes about this life with both a keen eye and a compassionate heart. The details and research is astounding yet the narrative of Asawa's life never gets bogged down in detail. Rather, it is enhanced by being able to connect more of the dots. I can't speak highly enough about how well written and organized this biography is.

I highly recommend this book to readers of biography, this is a wonderful example of the genre. Also any readers of art or art history books will find a lot of interesting information here. Finally, those interested in US history will appreciate this as a work of historical importance because of the efforts Asawa made to reunite her family during WWII and the response (or lack thereof) of government officials.

Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley.