Photojournalist Steve McCurry is best known for shooting one of the most famous photographs ever taken -– 1985′s “Afghan Girl,” an image of a young girl with sea green eyes staring defiantly into the camera. But war and those affected by it are not his only subjects. “Like most photographers, I’m fascinated by people in everyday situations,” he says. “The work I do is mostly wandering and observing human nature and human activity, working and playing and leisure time. As you’re walking around the streets of China, India, New York, whererver -– it is fun to photograph people simply doing things.”

One of his ongoing projects is compiling a collection of photos of people reading, entitled “Fusion: The Synergy of Energy and Words” (Part I and Part II). The idea to shoot photos of people reading was itself prompted by his relationship with legendary Hungarian photographer André Kertész, who was also fascinated with images of people reading. (You can view a gallery here).

McCurry’s photos cross these cultural and socioeconomic boundaries. His personal favorite of his collection is a photo of a young Thai man reading a book while nestled up to the back of an elephant, shot earlier this year (and reproduced below). Among the two dozen images posted online is photo of a group of Chinese men perusing newspapers through a shop window, another of an Afghan shopkeeper reading in his modest stall, and one Italian monks in contemplation with their Bibles.

As a photographer, McCurry is always on the hunt for the “unguarded moment,” that slice of time that reveals something personal and honest. “Reading offers a time for contemplation. Even in Afghanistan, where life is not easy, you notice people in unlikley circumstances reading,” he says. “I have a picture of a man in a manhole (below) -– he was using it as a bomb shelter between air raids — who was reading the book. Reading is something any literate person is drawn to do and it becomes a part of your life. It’s just one of the things that connects us all together, that reminds us that we’re all the same.”

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Thailand

Afghanistan

Al Hudaydah, Yemen

Jaipur, India

Kabul, Afghanistan

India

Kuwait

Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India

Tibet

Yemen

Yangon, Myanmar/Burma

Rieti, Italy

Chiang Mai, Thailand

Havana, Cuba

Siem Reap, Cambodia

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Rome, Italy

Kandahar, Afghanistan

Aranyaprathet, Thailand

Beijing, China

Shanghai, China

Rangoon, Myanmar/Burma

Mumbai, India

Camino, Italy

Yugoslavia

Sri Lanka

Nova Scotia, Canada

Pushkar, India

Venice, Italy

Kabul, Afghanistan

Sri Lanka

Thailand

Kashmir

Lombari, Brazil

Rome, Italy

India

Seoul, Korea

Sri Lanka

Turkey

Hazara, Afghanistan

India

Lourdes, France

China

Bangalore, India

Umbria, Italy

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Afghanistan

Mandalay, Myanmar, Burma

Japan

Istanbul, Turkey

Rome, Italy

India

Kuwait

Bamiyan, Afghanistan

Venice, Italy

Afghanistan

Burma

Angkor Thom

Jaipur, Rajasthan, India

Rome, Italy

Afghanistan

Burma

Spoleto, Italy

Arthur C. Clarke, Colombo, Sri Lanka

Kabul, Afghanistan (random nice fact: the painting in the background takes inspiration from McCurry’s “Afghan Girl”)

Part II coming soon! (: