Nell Beram and Carolyn Boriss-Krisky
Amulet Books ($24.95)
Yoko Ono turned 80 years old on February 18, 2013, but two new books remind us that in actuality, she’s timeless.

Collector of Skies is a full-fledged biography masquerading (successfully) as a picture book: a wealth of photos adorns the text, depicting each iconic moment in this extraordinary artist’s life. The title derives from a poem she wrote at age nineteen summarizing her life to date:

born: Bird Year
early childhood: collected skys
adolescence: collected seaweeds
late adolesence: gave birth to a
grapefruit, collected snails,
clouds, garbage cans, etc . . .

Ono retains this wistful imagistic approach to reality throughout a career encompassing installation art, music, performance, and one of the most famous marriages of the 20th century. Most of this story is known—there are no revelations here—but Collector of Skies puts it all in an inspiring format well suited for the precocious teenager in your life. And no matter your age, it’s a fitting reminder to imagine.