Taschen Norman Mailer/Bert Stern. Marilyn Monroe

Sensual, artistic, and cerebral, this volume pairs Norman Mailer’s classic book Marilyn with Bert Stern’s provocative “last sitting” portfolio to trace the complexity and the allure of an incomparable screen siren. An inspired synthesis of literature and art, this Limited Edition is a tribute to Monroe’s vulnerability, intelligence, and enduring charm. This book, conceived by Lawrence Schiller, Mailer’s collaborator on five works, combines the author’s masterful text with Stern’s penetrating images of the 36-year-old Marilyn. Photographed for Voguemagazine over three days at the Bel-Air Hotel, Marilyn had never allowed such unfettered access, nor had she looked so breathtakingly beautiful. Six weeks later, mysteriously, she was dead. In this bold synthesis of literary classic and legendary portrait sitting, Mailer and Stern lift the veils of confusion surrounding Monroe—the woman, the star, the sex symbol—and offer profound insight into an iconic figure whose true personality remains an enigma even today. Limited Collector’s Edition of 1,712 copies, each numbered and signed by Bert Stern