Shoes: The Meaning of Style

Reading this book left me with the realization that shoes are the most important objects that people generally consider frivolous. It's a social history of four kinds of footwear: sandals, boots, high-heels, and sneakers, in under 400 pages, and I wish it were longer. The history of sneakers I found particularly interesting, because style is not the only element that conveys meaning. Performance, practicality, visible branding, association with celebrity athletes and musicians, the dynamic of accessibility and exclusivity, faddishness and permanence. (It still blows me away that you could buy Converse All-Stars over 100 years ago. Chuck Taylor was famous in the 30's -- does this mean kids will be buying Air Jordans in 2075?)If you think you might be interested in the subject, read it.

This book is an excellent history of shoes that goes into depth on high heels, sandals, boots, and sneakers. I was really engaged by the depth with which this book went into its subject and I learned so many things about shoes that I never would have expected. Despite the serious scholarship that clearly went into it the book is very readable and amusing. I recommend this book to anyone interested in social history and/or the history of dress and design. This book is full of interesting anecdotes, insights, and history.