Material World:
A Global Family Portrait
~ Peter Menzel
and
Women in the
Material World
~ Faith D'Aluisio and
Peter Menzel

The tabs sticking out of Material World give a hint to how much I refer to this book. Stunning pictures and stories document the lives of 'ordinary' families from 30 countries. Each family is photographed outside their home with all their material possessions.

The companion book, Women in the Material World, revisits these families and describes the lives of the women. As our world becomes smaller, it is more important that we understand and respect each other. The spirit of both books can be summed up by Albert Einstein's quote on the last page of Material World: "Peace cannot be kept by force. It can only be achieved by understanding."

Photos by:
Dwight Bennett
& Ned Davis
HSC Libraries