Book Log 12/2012: Tanya Lloyd Kyl: 50 Underwear Questions

[jacey]

The fun history of underwear for children, useful for ages 7 – 10, or even slightly older, depending on the child, of course. Underwear isn't a subject you can find much source material on, especially for this age range, so this is a welcome addition to books on costume even if it does have a jokey approach and cartoon illustrations that are more about appeal than accuracy. It offers a pretty good outline of different types of underwear for men and women through the ages. There was one glaring omission in women's body shapes/corsetry. The timeline jumped from 18th century panniers to 19th century Victorian hooped skirts and completely missed out the more relaxed Regency styles and shapes, which was a short but important fashion period. That apart it seemed to cover most points from loin-cloths via jockstraps to boxers and from corsets via bloomers to thongs.