NetGalley ARC | Skirts: Fashioning Modern Femininity in the Twentieth Century

I received a free digital ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Rating ⭐

Coco Chanel was an actual Nazi. But it really felt like almost half of this book was a love letter to her and her influence on fashion. A NAZI. Are we suddenly okay with Nazis? Because, no. No no no.

There are parts of this book that were well-done. I loved the focus on Serena Williams and how she changed the face of tennis with her choices in game-day outfits. She's incredible and has changed the game in so many ways. In fact, I would have appreciated more focus on anyone besides thin white women though, as at many times throughout that's where the focus remained. There is mention of Laverne Cox which I also liked, as this inclusion was so important. Unfortunately, it was not enough.

Another issue with the book is that seemed to care more about telling the tory of the celebrity wearing the dress or skirt being discussed. Instead of focusing on what the dresses and skirts said about the time period in women's history, we get more info about the celeb themselves. Not exactly what I was reading the book for. There's not much in the way of feminist/feminine history, if that's what you're looking for.

And despite the title literally being Skirts, the book does not only focus on skirts, but dresses as well. Less than half the chapters were actually about skirts.

As I also metioned above, there was far too little information on any bodies except thin, white women.

It took everything I had to finish this book, which I actually did quite a while ago. It took even more effort to write up this very late review.

Ultimately, remember that Nazies are bad. Coco Chanel was bad. She should never be presented in any other way. And here, she was. Her Nazism was completely glazed over. Gross.