Tate Publishing and Abrams here present the first three titles of a new series on living artists. With their vibrant illustrations and attractive layout, the books are a pleasure to see, and each artist's life, work, and influences are considered at a level of detail usually found only in major exhibition catalogs. The series is exemplary for packing a lot of content into relatively few pages, with the book retaining clarity and coherence by staying close to the facts. The writers avoid jargon and overarching theories and are careful about attributing influences. Interspersed are brief interviews, allowing the artists' own voices to come through. Of the three, Sarah Lucas is the standout because Collings (Blimey! From Bohemia to Britpop) is an exceptional writer associated with the generation of artists who emerged in 1990s Britain. He draws out the black humor beneath the surface of Lucas's deliberately disturbing art, which treats themes of gender and sexuality. The writing is clear without oversimplifying. The authors of the other volumes are also well chosen, and their texts never overshadow the artists. Bradley is the exhibition organizer at the Hayward Gallery, London, and she curated a 1997 retrospective on the Portuguese-born, London-based figurative painter Paula Rego at the Tate Liverpool. Rudd is exhibition curator at the Tate Liverpool, where she worked with pop-artist Peter Blake on his 2000 exhibition. Highly recommended for all art libraries and of interest to larger public libraries.-Michael Dashkin, PricewaterhouseCoopers, New York Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.