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A review by camillalice
A Victorian Lady's Guide to Fashion and Beauty by Mimi Matthews
5.0
Absolutely fascinating!
I recognised Mimi Matthews’ name as I recently read and enjoyed one of her books, The Pug Who Bit Napoleon, so I got quite excited to see she had another book out.
A Victorian Lady’s Guide to Fashion and Beauty is a thorough study of the world of fashion and beauty in the higher classes of Victorian society. There is so much detail, enriched by wonderful illustrations, that it all comes to life and you can just imagine what it was like. Anyone interested in the time period should pounce on this.
I like how it’s organised by decade, it makes things really clear. Not only does Matthews describe the fashion and beauty trends (hairstyles and cosmetics) of the decade, but she also explains the reasons for changes and what was going on in history at the time. Yet she manages to keep the whole thing entertaining and light despite basically bombarding you with interesting information.
The extensive bibliography gives lots of ideas for those who might want to further research the topic – I admit I love going through bibliography to see what else I could read. In my opinion, a good history book needs a bibliography.
This is definitely a book I will eventually purchase so I can keep a hard copy at home.
Thanks to NetGalley and Pen&Sword History for providing me with a digital copy in exchange for an honest review.
I recognised Mimi Matthews’ name as I recently read and enjoyed one of her books, The Pug Who Bit Napoleon, so I got quite excited to see she had another book out.
A Victorian Lady’s Guide to Fashion and Beauty is a thorough study of the world of fashion and beauty in the higher classes of Victorian society. There is so much detail, enriched by wonderful illustrations, that it all comes to life and you can just imagine what it was like. Anyone interested in the time period should pounce on this.
I like how it’s organised by decade, it makes things really clear. Not only does Matthews describe the fashion and beauty trends (hairstyles and cosmetics) of the decade, but she also explains the reasons for changes and what was going on in history at the time. Yet she manages to keep the whole thing entertaining and light despite basically bombarding you with interesting information.
The extensive bibliography gives lots of ideas for those who might want to further research the topic – I admit I love going through bibliography to see what else I could read. In my opinion, a good history book needs a bibliography.
This is definitely a book I will eventually purchase so I can keep a hard copy at home.
Thanks to NetGalley and Pen&Sword History for providing me with a digital copy in exchange for an honest review.