This series gives an overview of fashion and trends, also providing some social and historical context. The text is dense in design and content, assuming the reader possesses a high level of knowledge, and it's fairly disorganized. But budding fashionistas will pore over the prodigious well-captioned photos and illustrations, which effectively differentiate among designers' styles throughout the decades. Reading list, timeline. Glos., ind.

Gr 7 Up-- Two volumes filled with color, splash, and razzle-dazzle. The 1950s is lively--indeed, Joseph McCarthy, Marilyn Monroe, and Elvis Presley will convince readers that the decade of Peter Pan collars and synthetic fibers wasn't at all dull. All appropriate details are included in The 1920s , from jazz, Lucky Lindy, and haute couture through the stock market crash and elections allowing women to wear knickers. Pictures of armorlike corsets and a woolen beach dress will astound today's blue-jeans set, and learning that the Lacoste polo shirt dates from the same period will make it relevant to them. Trivialities aside, both books show how clothing reflects changes in society. The easing of restrictions on women's lives, as well as the influence of economics, the media, and national myths are readily understood. Some attention is also given to male fashion and divergent dressing. A three-column time chart allows comparison of political, social, and fashion events. Attractive to those interested in the subject of clothing, the books will also be winners with students doing research on these specific eras.-- Cindy Darling Codell, Clark Middle School, Winchester, KY

Although this is part of the Fashions of a Decade series, there is almost as much here about the decade as there is about the fashion. The excellent photographs and illustrations, many from ads and magazines of the era, emphasize what was being shown by designers and worn by everyday women, but the text also discusses what was going on in the world: the cold war, segregation, the Cuban Revolution, and the role of women in society. There is also a good deal of information about the new miracle fabrics, such as rayon, that were taking over the fashion industry. Men's fashions are not neglected, with a discussion of both business wear ("The man in the gray flannel suit") and leisure wear. There is also an emphasis on the different ways that Hollywood influenced what a woman wore and how women were seemingly divided between girls next door and sirens. Organization is weak, but this will still work for report writers or browsers. Chronology and glossary appended.