R.I.P. Raymond Bial, 72, in Jan. 2021 (photographer: "Where Lincoln Walked," 1998)

[Lenona]

I have - or had - one of his shorter books: "Amish Home."

About that book:

"An eloquent, honest book that points out that the Amish, too, have their difficulties but concludes: 'In their world the individual occupies a small place, but is always valued. In the larger culture, the individual is foremost, yet people often feel isolated and alone.' ''

https://www.renner-wikoffchapel.com/obituary/Raymond-Bial
(with photo - and check out the long tribute wall!)

Raymond S. Bial, 72, passed away on January 1, 2021 of heart failure.

Raymond was born in Danville, Illinois, on November 5, 1948, the son of Marion and Catherine (Jackse) Bial. After a peripatetic childhood with a father in the military, Raymond and his family returned to Danville, where he graduated from Schlarman High School in 1967. He received both his B.A. in political science and history (1970) and his M.S. in library science (1979) from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Shortly after beginning library school in June, 1978, Raymond met his future wife, Linda LaPuma. They married in August, 1979.

Raymond went on to become the director of the library at Parkland College, but his true passions were for photography and writing. He published several books of beautiful photographs, and he was also a prolific author of photoessays on a variety of topics for children, many of which won awards. All his books express his love of the American landscape, its history, and its people. He also published works of fiction for children.

Raymond’s greatest joy in life, however, was to be a husband, father, and grandfather. He is survived by his wife, Linda, and their three children, Anna (Jack Tsai), Sarah, and Luke (Tam Dinh), and two grandchildren, Sebastian and Marina. He is also survived by his brothers John (Cindy Herrington) and Mark (Janet), and sister Catherine. He was predeceased by his parents and his brother William.

Raymond’s deep love and kindness toward animals was one of his most outstanding qualities. If you wish to make a donation in his memory, please consider a pet rescue organization. There will be no services at this time...


https://www.google.com/search?sca_esv=ac2b161def8f6d66&sca_upv=1&rlz=1CAJMBU_enUS1088&q=raymond+bial+books&tbm=isch&source=lnms&prmd=isbnvmhtz&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjJyp-Zqo-DAxX4RTABHSXMAD0Q0pQJegQIEhAB&biw=1366&bih=633&dpr=1
(book covers)

https://biography.jrank.org/pages/1910/Bial-Raymond-1948.html
(awards, booklist, and a LONG biographical article)

Excerpt:

Raymond Bial has blended a love of photography and writing with a special feeling for rural and small-town America to create numerous illustrated books looking at subjects from harvesting corn to rural architecture to one-room schools. His books on the many cultures of America—from Cajun to Native American to Appalachian—also introduce young readers to a type of living history that makes dry facts come alive. Other texts by Bial present historical topics, such as slavery, tenement life, the growth of the Shaker community, the treatment of Native Americans, and the life of U.S. presidents George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. His contributions to the "Building America" series, which include such titles as The Canals, The Mills, and The Forts, were cited by Booklist contributor Susan Dove Lempke for their "strong research, clear writing, good organization," and Bial's "handsome color photographs." In addition, Bial has produced several works of juvenile fiction, among them The Fresh Grave and Other Ghostly Stories and the novel Shadow Island.

Born in Illinois, Bial grew up in the same rural, small-town community he portrays in books such as Corn Belt Harvest, Cow Towns, and Early American Villages.

As the author/photographer once told SATA: "When I was growing up in the 1950s I spent several of the most joyous years of my young life in a small town in Indiana. With my friends, I bicycled around the neighborhood, went swimming at the municipal pool, stopped for ice cream at the local hotspot, and frequently visited our Carnegie public library. Some people might think that such memories are simply nostalgic, but I know that our little town was pleasant, comfortable, and safe—and I will always cherish those years.

"Later, our family moved to a farm in southern Michigan. Although I missed my old friends, as well as the charming atmosphere of my old 'hometown,' I enjoyed taking care of our livestock and running free through the woods, marsh, and fields around our new home. The moment I walked out of the house, I was truly outside. The marsh, in particular, was bursting forth with wildlife—turtles, frogs, muskrats, ducks—and I delighted in my explorations and discoveries." While his family had the usual ups and downs, as Bial recalled, "I was simply thrilled to be alive, directly experiencing the world around me, especially when I could be out of doors in the light and weather."

During childhood, Bial was also interested in social and cultural history, and he continued this interest in college. After training as a librarian, he worked in that field for over three decades...

https://www.kirkusreviews.com/author/raymond-bial/
(14 Kirkus reviews)

https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/authorpage/raymond-bial.html
(five PW reviews)

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/88027.Raymond_Bial
(reader reviews)

https://www.google.com/search?q=%22raymond+bial%22&sca_esv=ac2b161def8f6d66&sca_upv=1&rlz=1CAJMBU_enUS1088&hl=en&biw=1366&bih=633&tbm=vid&ei=9C97ZdfrC5Si5NoPx7KV0Aw&ved=0ahUKEwjXtd-Dr4-DAxUUEVkFHUdZBcoQ4dUDCA0&uact=5&oq=%22raymond+bial%22&gs_lp=Eg1nd3Mtd2l6LXZpZGVvIg4icmF5bW9uZCBiaWFsIjIGEAAYBxgeMgsQABiABBiKBRiGA0jYGVDXB1jkF3AAeACQAQCYAYIBoAH4AqoBAzAuM7gBA8gBAPgBAcICBhAAGBYYHsICCBAAGBYYHhgPiAYB&sclient=gws-wiz-video
(videos)

https://www.google.com/search?q=%22ray+bial%22&sca_esv=ac2b161def8f6d66&sca_upv=1&rlz=1CAJMBU_enUS1088&hl=en&biw=1366&bih=633&tbm=vid&ei=BzB7Zcz7LK-EwbkP-6WqwAE&ved=0ahUKEwiMm4iNr4-DAxUvQjABHfuSChgQ4dUDCA0&uact=5&oq=%22ray+bial%22&gs_lp=Eg1nd3Mtd2l6LXZpZGVvIgoicmF5IGJpYWwiMggQABgFGAcYHkjHDlDhB1jxC3AAeACQAQCYAcIBoAGZBaoBAzAuNbgBA8gBAPgBAcICBhAAGAUYHsICCxAAGIAEGIoFGIYDiAYB&sclient=gws-wiz-video
(he appears in two of these videos)


WRITINGS:
FICTION; FOR CHILDREN
The Fresh Grave and Other Ghostly Stories, illustrated by daughter, Anna Bial, Face to Face Books, 1997.
The Ghost of Honeymoon Creek, illustrated by Anna Bial, Face to Face Books, 1999.
Shadow Island (novel), Face to Face Books, 2000.
Shadow Island: A Tale of Lake Superior, Blue Horse Books (Milwaukee, WI), 2006.

NONFICTION FOR CHILDREN; AND PHOTOGRAPHER
Corn Belt Harvest, Houghton (Boston, MA), 1991.
County Fair, Houghton (Boston, MA), 1992.
Amish Home, Houghton (Boston, MA), 1993.
Frontier Home, Houghton (Boston, MA), 1993.
Shaker Home, Houghton (Boston, MA), 1994.
Portrait of a Farm Family, Houghton (Boston, MA), 1995.
The Underground Railroad, Houghton (Boston, MA), 1995.
With Needle and Thread: A Book about Quilts, Houghton (Boston, MA), 1996.
Mist over the Mountains: Appalachia and Its People, Houghton (Boston, MA), 1997.
The Strength of These Arms: Life in the Slave Quarters, Houghton (Boston, MA), 1997.
Where Lincoln Walked, Walker, 1997.
Cajun Home, Houghton (Boston, MA), 1998.
One-Room School, Houghton (Boston, MA), 1999.
A Handful of Dirt, Walker (New York, NY), 2000.
Ghost Towns of the American West, Houghton (Boston, MA), 2001.
(And photographer) A Book Comes Together: From Idea to Library, Bound to Stay Bound Books (Jacksonville, IL), 2002.
Tenement: Immigrant Life on the Lower East Side, Houghton (Boston, MA), 2002.
The Long Walk: The Story of Navajo Captivity, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2003.
Where Washington Walked, Walker (New York, NY), 2004.
Nauvoo: Mormon City on the Mississippi River, Houghton Mifflin (Boston, MA), 2006.

NONFICTION; "LIFEWAYS" SERIES
The Navajo, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 1999.
The Cherokee, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 1999.
The Iroquois, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 1999.
The Sioux, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 1999.
The Ojibwe, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2000.
The Pueblo, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2000.
The Seminole, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2000.
The Comanche, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2000.
The Apache, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2001.
The Huron, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2001.
The Haida, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2001.
The Cheyenne, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2001.
The Inuit, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2002.
The Shoshone, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2002.
The Powhatan, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2002.
The Nez Perce, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2002.
The Blackfeet, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2003.
The Tlingit, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2003.
The Mandan, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2003.
The Choctaw, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2003.
The Delaware, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2004.
The Chumash, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2004.
The Arapaho, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2004.
The Wampanoag, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2004.
The Shawnee, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2004.
The Menominee, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2005.
The Crow, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2005.
The Cree, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2005.

NONFICTION; "BUILDING AMERICA" SERIES
The Mills, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2002.
The Houses, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2002.
The Forts, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2002.
The Farms, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2002.
The Canals, Benchmark Books (New York, NY), 2002.

NONFICTION; "AMERICAN COMMUNITY" SERIES
Missions and Presidios, Children's Press (New York, NY), 2004.
Longhouses, Children's Press (New York, NY), 2004.
Frontier Settlements, Children's Press (New York, NY), 2004.
Early American Villages, Children's Press (New York, NY), 2004.
Cow Towns, Children's Press (New York, NY), 2004.

OTHER
Ivesdale: A Photographic Essay, Champaign County Historical Archives, 1982.
(Photographer and calligrapher) Upon a Quiet Landscape: The Photographs of Frank Sadorus, Champaign County Historical Museum, 1983.
(Editor) In All My Years: Portraits of Older Blacks in Champaign-Urbana, Champaign County Historical Museum, 1983, revised edition, 1985.
There Is a Season, Champaign County Nursing Home, 1984.
(With Kathryn Kerr) First Frost, Stormline Press, 1985.
Common Ground: Photographs of Rural and Small Town Life, Stormline Press, 1986.
Stopping By: Portraits from Small Towns, University of Illinois Press, 1988.
(With wife, Linda LaPuma Bial) The Carnegie Library in Illinois, University of Illinois Press, 1988.
(Author of introduction) Gary Irving, photographer, Beneath an Open Sky, University of Illinois Press (Champaign, IL), 1990.
From the Heart of the Country: Photographs of the Midwestern Sky, Sagamore Publishing, 1991.
Looking Good: A Guide to Photographing Your Library, American Library Association, 1991.
Champaign: A Pictorial History, Bradley Publishing, 1993.
(Photographer) Marcia Adams Heirloom Recipes, Clarkson Potter (New York, NY, 1994.
Visit to Amish Country, Phoenix Publishing, 1995.
Zoom Lens Photography, Amherst Media, 1996.
The Super Soybean, Albert Whitman & Co (Morton Grove, IL), 2007.
Champaign, Arcadia (Charleston, SC), 2008.
The Shaker Village, University Press of Kentucky (Lexington, KY), 2008.
Ellis Island, Houghton Mifflin Books for Children (Boston, MA), 2009.
Rescuing Rover: A Book About Saving Our Dogs, 2011.

[Lenona]

He had three entries in the "Something About the Author" encyclopedia series.