From Library Journal
In one concise volume, Wallace (art history, Washington Univ.) presents an accurately rendered life in intelligent, accessible prose. Though not footnoted, it consists of an overview with chronology of Michelangelo's life, followed by three extensive chapters on his major creations?sculpture, painting, and architecture?each illustrated with stunning photographs and post-restoration reproductions. There are several fold-out sections, including a full-color Sistine ceiling and a complete diagram of all its segments. The commentary accompanying each work is engaging, and the layout is thoughtful and well planned, corresponding to the text. While there is a plethora of worthwhile books on Michelangelo, including those that focus in depth on a particular aspect (see Pierluigi De Vecchi and Gianluigi Colalucci's Michelangelo: The Vatican Frescoes; The Complete Works Restored, LJ 3/15/97), these sumptuous reproductions are some of the best on the market. They succeed in conveying Michelangelo's grandeur and magnificence gracefully and factually and, if budgetary conditions allow, should serve as a first-choice introduction to students and interested lay readers.?Ellen Bates, New YorkCopyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Book News, Inc.
One hundred articles, selected from the vast amount of writing about Michelangelo, are arranged in five volumes, which are available as a set or separately. The collection is both accessible to the general reader and useful to the specialist, offering a sampling of old and new commentary on the artist and his work. V.1, Life and Early Works (0-8153-1823-5, $95) begins with overviews of Michelangelo's life and work and also contains more focused essays on his political thought and his chief biographers, as well as surveys of his early career and some principal works (including the Rome Piet<`;a> and the David. The other volumes are as follows: v.2: The Sistine Chapel (1825-1, $95); v.3: San Lorenzo (1826-X, $95), covering his mid-career, between 1515 and 1534; v.4: Tomb of Julius II and Other Works in Rome (1827-8, $90); and v.5: Drawings, Poetry, and Miscellaneous Studies (1828-6, $90). The articles are reproduced from various sources, and some are in reduced type that is not kind on the eyes. B&w photos are included in each volume. Unfortunately, neither the individual volumes nor the set as a whole is indexed. Annotation copyright Book News, Inc. Portland, Or.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Michelangelo - The Complete Sculpture, Painting, Architecture brings the artist and his remarkable work to life with particular clarity. In a rich weave of images and text, each chapter offers an intimate look at the artist's expression in a different medium. This volume includes beautiful photographs of Micheangelo's works but here also are never before seen details of his sculpture and architecture that invite us to linger. The black-and-white photographs printed in lush doutones that add depth, show in the marks of the chisel, the hand of Michangelo at work - the rough but deliberate strokes of a man struggling to express himself in an unyielding and unforgiving medium.

FROM THE CRITICS

Library Journal