WONDERLAND: Brooklyn 2007 - 2023

PRE-ORDER HERE NOW a signed copy, US only, released May 2026.
You'll receive your copy from me Feb/Mar 2026 earlier than the US release date.

Available NOW anywhere in the world, directly from publisher on the Kehrer Verlag website . Released December 2025.

Cloth hardcover
with tipped-in plate
21,6 x 27,9 cm / 8.5 x 11 in
128 pages
82 color illustrations
English
ISBN 978-3-96900-215-5
2025

Wonderland: Brooklyn 2007 - 2023 is a book about Brooklyn at a time when things were just starting to really change, the new cohabiting with the old. Through the eyes of a native Brooklynite and the aesthetic of toy cameras and medium format film, I tried to preserve what I could of its rebellious and uninhibited character as it transformed.

The book comprises photographs I made with plastic toy cameras in Brooklyn during the years of 2007 - 2023 with a foreword by award-winning photographer Claudio Edinger, and an Essay by Colin Spoelman co-founder and distiller at Kings County Distillery.

Quotes and Excerpts
"This collection of images by Valery Rizzo, Brooklyn born and raised photographer, beautifully captures the borough’s multiplicity. The images remind us of the complex network of neighborhoods that weave together to form something that is much more than the sum of its parts—a vibrant culture that burns as bright as a summer’s day. All in saturated living color." —Sean Corcoran, Senior Curator of Prints and Photographs, Museum of the City of New York

"Valery Rizzo's twelve year visual journey through the neighborhoods of Brooklyn, New York reveal a lively telling of small moments on the streets and beaches of this iconic borough. Wonderland is an apt title for her monograph as she uses the vignetting, light leaks and other distortions of a toy camera lens to provide a time machine of sorts. The quirkiness of the camera perfectly captures the idiosyncrasies of the subject matter. This is a book about joy, about seeing, and most importantly, it's a love letter to a place she calls home." —Aline Smithson, Artist and Founder of Lenscratch

"Valery Rizzo's heartfelt romance with her beloved plastic camera, the Holga, can be seen and experienced through her exploration of Brooklyn in Wonderland. Her magic plastic box shares her unique view of all things Brooklyn. It's a love story—magical, personal, and timeless—like your own memories. I recommend the journey." —Pauline St.Denis, Photographer and Holga Queen

"The resulting collection of images is an instant classic. A microcosmic Brooklyn which mirrors amazing, unique aspects of American life, present in different measure in most major urban centers in the US." —Claudio Edinger, Award-Winning Photographer

"That tapestry, and the multiplicity that has long defined Brooklyn, is an important backdrop for these photographs, which mark an important cultural era in Brooklyn’s history." —Colin Spoelman, Co-Founder and Distiller at Kings County Distillery