Manet: The Still Life Paintings

Close reading isn't just for poetry. In Manet: The Still-Life Paintings, George Mauner, distinguished professor emeritus of art history at Penn State, gives close and illuminating attention to some of the best-loved works in all of modern painting, reproduced here in 133 illustrations (106 in full color). Henri Loyrette, director of Paris's Mus e d'Orsay, contributes an essay showing Manet's place within a long tradition of still-life painters. Subject-based sections such as ""The First Flowers,"" ""Fruits and Vegetables"" and ""Two Festive Tables"" make a large body of work accessible and thematically coherent. ( Feb.)