<p>Five teens, and their families and friends, describe their experiences of living with cancer, discussing their fears and feelings regarding relationships and cancer treatments</p>

The C-Word: Teenagers and Their Families Living With Cancer

Politics & Social Sciences

Dorfman, Elena

Social Sciences

Newsage Pr

In Still Lovers, Elena Dorfman explores the complex relationships between life-sized, synthetic sex dolls and their owners. For many, the idea of the sex doll conjures images of the kitschy inflatable, but these expensive, highly realistic dolls, which owners customize to the smallest detail, are far from silly, and they' perform more than a sexual role for their owners. What started for Dorfman in 1999 as a playful curiosity - a project about "men having sex with 125 pounds of perfectly formed synthetic female" - rapidly became a serious exploration of the emotional and psychological ties between the owners and their dolls. Her candid wonderment and nonjudgmental approach present a fascinating glimpse into the personalities that owners invest in their dolls and the zest with which they attire them. The dolls become sculptural beauties, sex kittens, companions, and family members. One woman owns several dolls that represent different aspects of her personality and sexuality; another owner, a military officer, dreams of marrying his "Azra." A suburban owner drinks coffee on the couch as "Taffy" lounges nearby in her crotchless negligee. A family goes about their morning routine with "Valentine" at the kitchen table. Dorfman's deft treatment of the subject and neutral color palate keep the images firmly grounded in a documentary tradition that depicts the subjects outside of the visual schema associated with fantasy. The result is that we as viewers - though we know the dolls to be passive and inanimate - begin to believe in the owners' vision of and love for their dolls. Dorfman's images confront the concept of the ideal woman and her place in the home, and they challenge our notions of love while they show the imagination's powerful function in achieving and sustaining it.

Still Lovers

Arts & Photography

Individual Artists

Channel Photographics

<p>Facing cancer is a life-changing event, one that prompts soul-searching and a reevaluation of all that one holds to be true. In the years following their own cancer treatments, authors Elena Dorfman and Heidi Schultz Adams were left wondering, What difference has cancer made in other people's lives? What does it mean to survive a life-threatening illness? In Here and Now, Dorfman and Adams offer photographic portraits and personal stories of 38 people -- of all ages and from all walks of life -- who have confronted cancer at some point in their lives. Their stories explore both the universal questions raised by a cancer diagnosis, and how their unique answers to those questions shaped each survivor into who they are today. Here and Now is a beautiful volume that will provide comfort and insight to everyone from the recently diagnosed to the 20-year survivor, eloquently demonstrating how seemingly insurmountable adversity can bring forth surprising courage and strength, both in us and those around us.</p>

Here and Now: Inspiring Stories of Cancer Survivors

Adams, Heidi Schultz

Biographies & Memoirs

Da Capo Lifelong Books

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Books by Dorfman, Elena