Utopia Parkway: The Life and Work of Joseph Cornell

I think Utopia Parkway must have been one of the first biographies I read for pleasure. (That is, after all the sports bios of my youth.) Lightly written and deeply appreciative, Solomon's 1997 book made the convincing case that Cornell, often patronized as a reclusive, weirdo savant, was in fact a lot closer to Duchamp than Henry Darger, a self-consciously modern artist from the beginning who became as influential as any of his peers. Now it's been brought back into print in a far lovelier edition that does justice to the haunting beauty of Cornell's originals.