Reviews

Shoes for the Moscow Circus is an atmospheric, lyrical look behind the scenes of a number of Australian trades and industries, many of which are fast disappearing in the western world. Arts writer Leta Keens, with photographer Oliver Strewe, visits more than 25 factories and workshops including an umbrella maker and cricket ball factory, a taxidermist and a bicycle maker, a tannery and a dolls' hospital and discovers far more than simply the history and processes involved in these trades. With an engagingly readable style, she also tells the stories of the characters who inhabit these intriguing, and often little known, worlds. This superbly designed and presented book is lavishly illustrated with evocative black and white photographs.