The Thoughtful Dresser: The art of adornment, the pleasures of shopping, and why clothes matter, by Linda Grant

From birth, we all wear clothes. What we wear and why we wear particular garments is intrinsic to our sense of self and how we present ourselves to the world. Even those of us who claim to have no interest in fashion or to not care about what we wear are, in fact, making a statement about our beliefs (fashion is shallow and trivial). This, yes thoughtful, book ranges from a meditation on a red high-heeled shoe amongst the heap of shoes displayed at Auschwitz, to the author’s mother’s assertion that “a good handbag makes the outfit,” to the invisibility of older women and the author’s own autobiography in clothes. The author is also a prizewinning British novelist and the writing is excellent. 210 pp.