Heart and Sole: The Shoes of My Life [Hardcover]

Jane Eldershaw (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 2004

"There are only two kinds of women in the world, those who love shoes and those who had the misfortune to be born without the ability to experience total bliss on finding a pair of perfectly designed pumps in the right size at half price."

Heart and Sole is a lighthearted illustrated memoir, full of wisdom and humor, of one woman's life through her shoes. Jane Eldershaw remembers the shoes she has loved, the ones that turned out to be terrible mistakes, and the important life lessons she learned along the way. She writes about her first pair of heels (and the battle she had with her mother to get them), the white go-go boots and wooden platform shoes of her youth, and the power of red shoes, as well as how to judge a man by his shoes and the importance of girlfriends when shopping for footwear.
Heart and Sole dishes out shoe advice, fashion memories, and warmhearted observations on the shoes of our lives. The perfect gift for every shoe diva and footwear lover.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Heart and Sole is about the shoes that make you feel wonderful (red strappy sandals), the shoes that turn out to be false friends (those sexy black boots that pinch your toes after two blocks), and the shoes you adore but can't actually wear (the most darling size six pink sneakers snatched up on sale---except you're a size seven). Heart and Sole is about the subliminal signals shoes send ("I am beautiful, stylish, and in control!"), and how the right pair can temporarily transform you into whomever you want to be.

Shoe-obsessed? A footwear fanatic? This is your book!

About the Author

Jane Eldershaw is a writer and magazine illustrator. Born in Australia, she has worked for many magazines and newspapers, including the New Woman magazine and Vogue Australia.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 144 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press; First Edition edition (May 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312323042
• ISBN-13: 978-0312323042
• Product Dimensions: 7.3 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,607,779 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Adorable Shoe Fits, June 18, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Heart and Sole: The Shoes of My Life (Hardcover)

This is a very readable (and visual) light treat for both shoe-a-holics and those who can't resist the puns of sole fantasies.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Memories and Cinderella Shoe Moments, August 15, 2004

By 

Rebecca Johnson "The Rebecca Review" (Washington State) - See all my reviews
(COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Heart and Sole: The Shoes of My Life (Hardcover)

After returning from a recent trip to LA, my husband commented on women's obsession with style and I had just purchased a pair of shoes that made me look much taller and thinner. Shoes can make you lose weight, I love it.

Anyway, it was time to read this adorable book about shoes. I don't have as many shoes as I did in college although I tend to remember my life in some autobiographical way through the shoes I was wearing at the time. I remember the boots I wore in Paris and the sexy shoes with sparkly diamonds I wore for a special occasion.

Jane Eldershaw seems to see life in a similar fashion. Heart and Sole is a lighthearted memoir that explores Jane's life through her shoe selections. She gives tips on how to judge a man by his choice of shoes and why there are only two types of women in the world.

Jane Eldershaw is a writer and magazine illustrator who was born in Australia. Her writing style is original, playful and has a love for descriptive words to tease your mind. She has worked for New Woman and Vogue Australia. The book jacket hides a beautiful high-quality ruby covered and exquisitely bound book. Women who love well-made shoes will appreciate the style and quality of this tiny book. The book was also illustrated by Jane and I was especially amused by "toe decolletage." She has drawn pictures of her shoes, everything from her boots to her Italian Interlude when she wore shoes from Rome. She explores life choices after she wore her new cherry-red-spike-heeled ankle-straps with silver buckles.

Jane also reveals interesting facts about Marilyn Monroe, Barbie dolls and how to find a shoe-inn for storage. Where do your shoes live? What is the heel called. I had no idea there was a "kitten" heel, but it is very common.

I could easily become obsessed with shoes again and have been in the past, but lately I'm all about comfort and the shoes that are fancy are sure to only be worn for special occasions. This book reminded me of how fun it is to shop for shoes and I'm of course always on the look for pretty slippers for wearing while writing reviews. I did try on clear plastic shoe the other day and had to feel a bit sorry for Cinderella. Glass could not be overly comfortable although a girl can dream. I've stepped on broken glass and ruined a heel while almost tripping down steps, so that might be a sign.

This delicious book made me fondly remember the Nordstrom of the past where men dressed in suits played Prince Charming and slipped slippers of all colors onto your feet. Where have those days gone? Jane explores the elements of a good shoe salesman and it is nothing like Married with Children. ;) It is a bit more like Sex and the City. My husband might want to read this book because he is a shoe guy. He has been known to give me advice on shoe selections. He hasn't seen what I bought for our anniversary. Hee, hee...

Other unique features:

Tips on How to Care for Shoes

Discarding Your Past Personalities

What a cobbler Can and Can't do!

Feel-Good Fix-Ups for Fatigued Feet

If you read one book on shoes in this lifetime this should be the book. Perfect for keeping in your matching purse for reading just about anywhere.

~The Rebecca Review

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What fun!, December 4, 2005

By 

J. Arena (Williamsburg, VA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Heart and Sole: The Shoes of My Life (Hardcover)

When you can't get out to the mall and actually SHOP for shoes, you can get that same shoe-shopping FIX from Jane Eldershaw's book. It's every bit as cute as those red, kitten-heel, t-straps that you've been dreaming about. (If you don't know what that means, this book is NOT for you!)