A San Francisco, Calif., nonprofit organization called Creativity Explored culls a wildly imaginative array of artwork from neurodiverse artists who use different media to express themselves for the fascinating Art Is Art: Collaborating with Neurodiverse Artists at Creativity Explored. The "voices of artists 'on the margin' " interact with the world differently, and this collection of hundreds of paintings, drawings, illustrations and sculptures showcases their artistic visions. Their creations can be as simple as found objects on a wooden tray or a love poem written on a brown paper bag and decorated with color markers--and as striking as a sequined skull or a mannequin head startlingly painted to resemble a "devil woman." Throughout it all, editor Ann Kappes reminds readers that art is art and can be found everywhere. --Paul Dinh-McCrillis, freelance reviewer

The Art of Ruth E. Carter: Costuming Black History and the Afrofuture, from 'Do the Right Thing' to 'Black Panther' is a stunning book that celebrates the three-decades-long career of Ruth E. Carter, the first Black Oscar-winner in costume design, and the Black heroes she dressed. Its 152 full-color pages contain a dazzling collection of sketches and movie stills. Breathtaking photography captures the intricacy of Carter's creations, providing stunning visuals to accompany her insights and anecdotes about costuming iconic actors, such as Angela Bassett and Eddie Murphy, and working with award-winning directors, including Spike Lee and Steven Spielberg. This inspiring showcase demonstrates how Carter helped to shape the narrative of Black experience in American cinema and introduce Afrofuturism to the mainstream. --Grace Rajendran, freelance reviewer

The Art of the Line in Drawing is an attractive and informative book on the deceptively simple art of line drawing. As French artist Frédéric Forest notes, the line is "one of the earliest forms of mark-making in human history." It's a technique that's been used by everyone from Keith Haring, "one of the most well-known and celebrated line artists of the modern world," to today's fashion designers. In this amply illustrated book, Forest teaches the basic techniques of line art; describes the effects created by fine, smooth, brushed, and colored lines; and demonstrates how he uses each technique to draw everything from the body to portraits to swans. The result is a fun, useful guide intended to bring out the inner artist in readers. --Michael Magras, freelance book reviewer

At once comprehensive and enigmatic, Bob Dylan: Mixing Up the Medicine brilliantly showcases hundreds of photos and objects from the Bob Dylan Center in Tulsa, Okla. Mark Davidson and Parker Fishel asked roughly 30 writers and artists to reflect on images or items from the Dylan archive, adding their diverse perspectives to the popular perceptions of the singer's long career and musical influence.

The book dives into Dylan's origin story, his years on the folk circuit, and the context of the American folk scene he would come to shape. It chronicles his experience of touring, recording, making videos, and becoming an activist. The book's sheer volume--photos, letters, ephemera, manuscripts--contrasts with its tightly focused deep-dive essays, forming a fascinating, kaleidoscopic portrait of an American icon. --Katie Noah Gibson, blogger at Cakes, Tea and Dreams

The sumptuous photographs featured in Jamie Beck's The Flowers of Provence--taken on location or in her studio--arose from a lockdown Instagram challenge. For the American expat, the flora of the countryside of southern France is "a source of salvation and creative expression." The canvas may be large--lavender and sunflower fields, roses climbing stone walls--or small. Her still lifes are as detailed and colorful as medieval paintings, and incorporate fruit and insects. Irises and poppies play starring roles. Fallen petals and mist, or lilac and spring blossoms, evoke turning seasons. Beck (An American in Provence) creates impressionist homages: a tasteful nude self-portrait recalls Manet's Le Déjeuner sur l'herbe; mother-and-baby scenes with her daughter, Eloise, mimic Mary Cassatt. There's also advice for preserving cut flowers. Beck presents a gorgeous book, perfect for gardeners, romantics, and armchair travelers. --Rebecca Foster, freelance reviewer, proofreader and blogger at Bookish Beck

After Rise: A Pop History of Asian America from the Nineties to Now (with Phil Yu and Philip Wang), Jeff Yang turns his focus to the history of Hollywood productions featuring Asians in the captivating The Golden Screen.

Readers will likely have heard of hits like The Joy Luck Club and Everything Everywhere All at Once, which won an Oscar for Best Picture, but Yang's book covers more than 100 additional films that are seminal in their own ways: 1986's A Great Wall, for instance, was the first American movie permitted to shoot in mainland China. The book also features conversations with stars such as Kelly Marie Tran and Kal Penn, and vibrant artwork by Asian illustrators, who reimagine posters of such popular movies as The Goonies by putting the Asian characters front and center--instead of near the margins. --Elyse Dinh-McCrillis, reviewer and freelance editor at The Edit Ninja

In Gotcha Day!, animal advocate and photographer Greg Murray (Peanut Butter Puppies) beautifully captures "the happiness, love, and connection shared between rescue dogs and their humans." More than 60 inspirational stories--paired with crisp, striking photographs--cleverly highlight rescues like Moose, a one-eyed mix of Husky, Bull Terrier, Chow Chow, and Hound, who believes he's invisible whenever he hides under blankets; Dante, a Basset Hound, who exemplifies his Italian namesake: he loves to devour tomatoes from the family garden; Trinket, a Chihuahua mix whose rough start in life contributes to her nail-biting fixation; and Tilly, a pug who sings whenever she gets excited. These fun, captivating profiles of quirky canines will rescue pet lovers from the stressors of life. --Kathleen Gerard, blogger at Reading Between the Lines

When filmmaker John Waters wrote in Mr. Know-It-All, his 2019 memoir, "Somehow I became respectable," he likely had no idea that four years later, he'd achieve the ultimate in respectability as the subject of an Academy Museum of Motion Pictures retrospective: John Waters: Pope of Trash. This audacious and vivacious companion volume looks back at his 12 feature films and four shorts--40 years of spirited schlock and experiments in shock. The book brims with movie stills and souvenirs from Waters's cinematic outings: props, production-design drawings, and so on. All this reinforces a remark made by film historian Jeanine Basinger, one of several writers who contribute essays on Waters's work: "His world is a wild ride, all right, but someone sane is driving." --Nell Beram, author and freelance writer

Latin American Artists: From 1785 to Now expands on Phaidon's iconic The Art Book with a collection of images created by 308 artists from 20 countries and territories, accompanied by brief but serious supplementary text. With a thorough introduction by academic art historian and curator Raphael Fonseca, this large-format book is an art object in itself. Each artist is represented by a single important work and brief biographical and artistic context, written in an academic tone. These enormously diverse artists, who span a broad range of media, are organized not chronologically, conceptually, or regionally; instead, an alphabetical presentation results in surprising and thought-provoking juxtapositions. Perfect for art lovers or scholars and essential for academics, this is a simply stunning visual feast for readers at large. --Julia Kastner, librarian and blogger at pagesofjulia

Scent-forward living and perpetual ambience imbue Let It Burn: Illuminate Your Life with Candles and Fragrance,a petite coffee-table book by Sir Candle Man. The former tech executive turned TikTok sensation provides practical selection advice--scent, strength, style, and wax--along with candle-maintenance tips, self-care imperatives, and vibe curation through scent and placement. Even long-time wax warriors will alight on fresh perspectives. A refreshingly warm tone of inclusivity is found throughout the pages, such as when he reminds readers that scents aren't gendered. Sir Candle Man also honors all sorts of candle budgets, from bargain shoppers to high-end purveyors. As Sir Candle Man says, "Fragrance is an art that helps make your life beautiful, and everyone deserves to feel that." --Nina Semczuk, writer, editor, and illustrator

With the Liberation Tarot Deck, artist and organizer Elicia Epstein offers not only an alternative to standard tarot decks but reframes the "traditional arcanas as an activist tool." The result of a multi-year collaboration with more than 30 artists and activists across the globe, this deck and its accompanying booklet eschew coherent aesthetics to showcase the style of each artist in cards "reimagined to fit a worldview that is beyond gender, disrupts assumptions of violence as power, and centers interdependence." Idiosyncratic suits of Vessels, Flowers, Spirals, and Blades blend with transformations of the known (such as the King of Cups becoming the Crone of Vessels, a card featuring "godmother of the Black Trans Lives Matter Movement" Ceyenne Doroshow) in this revolutionary entry into the tarot canon. --Kristen Coates, editor and freelance reviewer

Celebrating the 1965 launch of Yves Saint Laurent's iconic frock, Mondrian's Dress: Yves Saint Laurent, Piet Mondrian, and Pop Art by Nancy J. Troy and Ann Marguerite Tartsinis documents the spectacular, fortuitous collision of French couture, Dutch abstract art, and American pop culture that resulted from that simple yet striking dress.

Talented storytellers with a true passion for their subject matter, art scholars Troy and Tartsinis embellish Mondrian's Dress with lavish photography, newspaper and magazine articles from the era, and eye-catching graphics illustrating the "phenomenal impact" of Saint Laurent's geometric patterned dress on New York street fashion. This elegant coffee-table collectible is sure to intrigue readers with its animated exploration of the "manifold connections" between fashion and art in the pop-culture explosion of the swinging '60s. --Shahina Piyarali, reviewer

During the Harlem Renaissance, The Brownies' Book was published as a monthly magazine by W.E.B. Du Bois. It was geared toward Black children to show them the very best in Black culture. In The New Brownies' Book, Karida L. Brown (Gone Home) and Charly Palmer (The Legend of Gravity) showcase a multigenerational assortment of collaborators who continue telling the story. Chapters, which give a broad survey of perspectives, include "Family Ties," "Young Langston" (Hughes was an early contributor), "School Daze," and "She'roes." Although the original Brownies' Book was created for children, this volume will be enjoyed by all readers and become a staple in many family libraries. Black life and culture in the early 20th century is beautifully revisited and revered in this visually stunning history lesson. The art, essays, photographs, and ephemera add weight and context to the various types of writing. This book is an ideal gift for anyone who appreciates the Black American diaspora and the beauty of its history and culture. --Shannan L. Hicks, freelance writer and librarian

In Now Is Better, visual artist and world-renowned designer Stefan Sagmeister (Beauty, with Jessica Walsh) sets out to convince readers that, despite our present-day challenges, we are living in a vastly improved world when compared to the past. Sagmeister's art--combining classic works of Western art history with a modern sense of color, bold shapes, and design--accompanies short essays that point out the growth of humanity over time: we live longer, experience less hunger, have come to favor peace over war, and value democracy over dictatorships.

Sagmeister, who never negates the challenges of the present day, invites readers to consider a new way of framing those challenges within a larger historical and modern context. With full-color art, gilded edges, and in a softcover binding with a decorative slipcover, Now Is Better is a visually and intellectually stunning work of art from start to finish. --Kerry McHugh, freelance writer

Rare Air: Endangered Birds, Bats, Butterflies & Bees is a wildlife field guide for a new generation. Artist Sarah Kaizar (Hiker Trash) presents a gorgeously designed, deceptively simple collection of pen-and-ink illustrations of winged creatures of various kinds. Each animal has a threatened status, either through the Endangered Species Act (ESA) or the Red List of the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature). Paired with Kaizar's art are evocative essays from A. Scott Meiser, each one highlighting the natural history or conservation challenges facing these species. The polished art and informative but funny writing will appeal to a broad range of eco-conscious readers and thinkers. Rare Air makes a perfect gift for style-conscious birders or environmentalists. --Sara Beth West, freelance reviewer and librarian

Fans of the iconic 1980 movie Airplane! will savor Surely You Can't Be Serious: The True Story of Airplane! But so will film buffs and anyone who appreciates a memoir of decades of friendship and collaboration.

Wisconsin high school buddies David Zucker, Jim Abrahams, and Jerry Zucker--who segued their quirky comedy act called Kentucky Fried Theater into the comedic genius of Airplane!--share anecdotes, photos, and behind-the-scenes insights: Who really, for instance, wrote the jive talk scene? As "kids who spent 100 percent of their lives looking for things to spoof," they happened upon Zero Hour!, a 1957 air disaster drama, and Airplane! was born. Dozens of fans, including Sarah Silverman, Keenen Ivory Wayans, and Gore Vidal, attest to the timeless hilarity of this classic cinematic icon. --Cheryl McKeon, Book House of Stuyvesant Plaza, Albany, N.Y.

The introduction to Hannah Kane's The Style Thesaurus, her first solo piece of nonfiction, summarizes the importance of style; she writes that "the clothes we wear have accrued meaning through history and culture, and function as a language that can, to some extent, be read." Kane previews a broad array of styles, ranging from retro to fetish fashion. Periods and trends are discussed in sections such as time, utility, music and dance, leisure, conformists, subcultures and countercultures, statement, and sex and gender. This beautifully organized and well-written fashion guide is immensely practical and will inform and inspire fashion enthusiasts. Each entry--which places styles in their historical contexts and provides synonyms, cross references, and pairings--also includes beautiful visuals. The Style Thesaurus is a one-stop resource for all things style and fashion. --Clara Newton, freelance reviewer

PCMag editor Jordan Minor sidescrolls through the greatest gaming hits, from 1977 to 2022, in the gorgeously designed, thoroughly researched compendium Video Game of the Year, featuring dynamic, color-drenched illustrations by Wren McDonald. Minor highlights one game per year, from the debut of simplistic Pong through complex franchises like Final Fantasy and the rise of mobile gaming with Pokémon Go.

Readers looking to level up their knowledge of game evolution and mechanics or get a dose of nostalgia should find plenty to love as Minor explores the medium in which "a portly plumber, speedy rodent, and an armor-clad space marine [can] all be equally famous mascots." Sidebars entitled "Extra Life" cover additional titles of note. Minor's book is perfect for anyone who spent their youth rescuing the princess. --Jaclyn Fulwood, blogger at Infinite Reads