Lives of Famous Dwarfs

Throughout history people of short stature have distinguished themselves in a surprising variety of fields. Simon Webb’s new book focuses on the lives of four remarkable men with restricted growth: the painter Toulouse-Lautrec, the poet Alexander Pope, the anti-slavery pioneer Benjamin Lay and the fake Polish count, Joseph Boruwlaski. The book also touches on the lives of the courtier Jeffery Hudson, the jazz men Chick Webb and Michel Petrucciani, the actor Peter Dinklage, the music-hall performer Little Tich, the Ovitz family (known as the dwarfs of Auschwitz) and the disability campaigner Tom Shakespeare.Read more