Reviews provided by Syndetics

Booklist Review

Written in conjunction with a Metropolitan Museum of Art exhibition, this volume spotlights Victorian women and their fashions. As "moderns," the English Victorians and their climactic Great Exhibition of 1851 had developed a stronghold in the Industrial Revolution, with the progress of textile manufacture resulting in the accessibility of mass-produced goods to the bourgeoisie. Goldthorpe's insightful text describes the historical background of women's costume from the beginning to the height of Victoria's reign (1837-77), including discussions of royal influences. A perceptive account of the perpetually changing Victorian silhouette, especially the strict morality endured by the fashionable Victorian woman. Attractive color and black-and-white photos throughout. No index. --Janet Lawrence