Spree: A Cultural History of Shopping (Paperback)

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Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

It's a shopper's delight--without, unfortunately, the bargain-store names and addresses needed to make a score. Canadian journalist Klaffke has obviously had more fun than any writer should in writing about this ancient, usually female-dominated sport. From 687 BCE (the first use of coins in Lydia) to the present, she chronicles a huge variety of facts and fictions, statistics and stories. Have you ever wondered where the world's biggest flea market is? Or heard of shopper's bulimia? Do you know how and when the great inventions of shopping--cash registers, shopping carts, and bar codes--were born? Care to place a bet on who's got more economic power, QVC or Home Shopper's Network? Other topics include the retail store, shopping from home, discounting, the media (ah, for Breakfast at Tiffany's), secondhand items, and more. Spree ends with the perfect point-of-purchase impulse buy: the shopping behavior of individuals born under each sign of the zodiac. Barbara Jacobs
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Review

... a counterpoint to all the chatter... as free of spin as Lucky magazine - and just as entertaining. -- The New York Times

...[the] dish about something that has evolved from a need to a want to, yes, a sport. -- The Calgary Herald

...an exhaustively researched look into the history of shopping and how it has changed pop culture... -- Nexus

Journalist Pamela Klaffke does for shopping what Margaret Visser did for table salt in her new book, Spree. . . -- Fashion Magazine

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Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Arsenal Pulp Press (November 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1551521431
• ISBN-13: 978-1551521435
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,534,190 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Spree. Whee!, August 16, 2005

By	takingadayoff "takingadayoff" (Las Vegas, Nevada) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

I picked up Spree; A Cultural History of Shopping thinking it would be a quick and enjoyable read. Enjoyable, yes. Quick, no.

For such a small book (trade paperback, 230 pages including an excellent bibliography and index), Spree is packed with more information about shopping than you would have imagined.
Canadian author Pamela Klaffke examines shopping from a multitude of angles, taking only a few pages at most for each topic. She really knows how to distill information down to the basics, while remaining informative and entertaining. Learn about Muzak, malls, Tupperware, infomercials, pawn shops, mystery shoppers, dysfunctional shopping, mall walking, and more. My favorite chapter is Shopping and the Media, which examines how shopping is portrayed in movies, television (sitcoms and game shows), and music.

The text is interesting enough, but in the wide side margins of many pages are additional tidbits, such as a list of celebrity shoplifters, a list of celebrity cheapskates (Katie Couric!), and the evolution of Buy Nothing Day.

Great to browse through or to read from cover to cover.

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book For Shoppers and Sociologists, February 7, 2008

By	Elizabeth D. O. Connell (Lexington, KY USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I loved this book. Every page was filled with interesting facts I did not previously know. Who knew the word Muzak was invented in the 1930s? Not me. I was constantly reading passages aloud to whoever was nearby to hear, (my mother, my best friend, my boss, a random student in the Starbuck's).

I would suggest this book for anyone interested in the socio-cultural aspects and impact of shopping.

3.0 out of 5 stars I wondered why shopping was so important, January 14, 2007

By	G. Heap "Graeme" (Auckland, New Zealand) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is a good read, certainly for those interested in history. It was a bit light and wasn't helpful in terms of marketing or research, but interesting none the less.