In this book, Peter Rathmann shows us pictures of America. They are not 'spectacular' but very much worth seeing and the rewards gleaned from them will be commensurate to the attentiveness they call for. Rather then indiscreet glimpses and superficial views, one finds strange -- in the positive meaning of the word -- graphic compositions. This is the work of a photo-designer whose daily tasks include arranging things before the camera in a commanding way. In so doing, he cannot rely on the inherent optical attractiveness of the products that are advertised. Often he has to provide settings, ingeniously arrange and artificially present them to what seems to their best advantage. This requires a creativity-consuming degree of professionalism.