Shoes: Their History in Words and Pictures (Hardcover)

~ (Author), David Yue (Illustrator) "How did you choose the shoes you are wearing today?..." (more)
Key Phrases: shoe styles, wooden soles, square toes, Middle Ages (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 6-8. Those sensibly padded work shoes, feathery mules, or expensive loafers you're wearing may reveal clues to your personality. So what could we guess about Marie Antoinette, who had to index her huge shoe wardrobe, or Napoleon's Josephine, with her 521 pairs of dainty footwear? Filled with vignettes such as these and interesting, little-known facts, this book traces the history of shoes, but in a much more readable style than its somewhat dry title suggests. Readers learn, for example, how Roman emperors rewarded commoners with the privilege of wearing special red or purple ceremonial sandals, how medieval laws regulated the length of shoes' toes, and how wearing aristocratic shoes was potentially dangerous during the French Revolution. The short chapters are chronologically arranged, providing a good historical overview of classical to modern times with just the right scope for the intended audience. Ample black-and-white drawings illustrate almost every style of footwear mentioned in the text. A complete index and extensive bibliography are included, with an indication of books that might interest younger readers. Using the chapter about shoe detectives as a connection, this title could be paired nicely in a booktalk with Donna Jackson's The Bone Detectives (Little, Brown, 1996).?Leigh Ann Jones, Carroll Middle School, Southlake, TX
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Gr. 5^-8. Both this and Lawlor's Where Will This Shoe Take You? A Walk Through the History of Footwear are in-depth studies of footwear through the ages. Lawlor arranges her facts around topics of protection, authority, status, and fashion; the Yues present a strictly chronological treatment. Each of their chapters is devoted to the evolution of shoes in a different era or century, with emphasis placed on Western civilizations. Both books discuss shoes and magic and look at specialty shoes for work and play. Lawlor includes more stories about shoes and the people who wore them; the Yues provide more historical facts and drawings of different shoe styles. Their lengthy bibliography indicates books of interest to younger readers. Susan DeRonne

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9-12
  
• Hardcover: 104 pages
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children (April 28, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0395726670
• ISBN-13: 978-0395726679
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.8 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #216,168 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars great for kids... or those who don't mind kids books, March 27, 2007

By	cxlxmx - See all my reviews

I would say this is a book that belongs in an elementary school library or the kids section of a public library. But for what it is, it is great, and I enjoyed it nonetheless.

4.0 out of 5 stars nice summary of shoe history, August 12, 2009

By	DuhBe (Kenosha, WI, USA) - See all my reviews

This book has some great basics about shoes and how they evolved. The sketches and names of historical shoes show how footwear has changed through the centuries and is also good for people wanting an overview of historical footwear for costume purposes. More color photographs of old shoes would have been nice, but the sketches were helpful enough.