Book Reviews

Fashion 101

By Jennifer Redmond

Books

Fashion 101:  A Crash Course in Clothing, by Erika Stalder (Zest Books, 2008). What is a Chelsea boot? How do you properly wear an Obi belt? Who made the Nehru jacket famous and what do you wear with it anyway?  This book has the answers, complete with great illustrations from Ariel Krietzman so you can see just how goofy parachute pants really are and clearly understand the difference between Capri pants, clam diggers and pedal pushers.

Though targeted for teens, my tween daughter and I had a ball with Fashion 101. In 128 pages and in very colloquial language, Stalder identifies fashion basics, tells you "who made them hot" (mom translation: who made them famous) and explains "how to rock them" (mom translation: how to wear them properly). Moms, imagine the fun you can have explaining that the stirrup pants your daughter saw you wearing in those old pictures were modeled after Mary Tyler Moore, who first wore them on The Dick Van Dyke Show.

This book is fun and useful for both moms and kids. Not a fashionista? All the more reason to take a look at Fashion 101. www.zestbooks.net. List price: $17.95, paperback.