From Rags to Riches: A History of Girl's Clothing in America

by Leslie Sills

Describes how clothing for girls in the United States has reflected society's changing views on children, from dressing girls as little adults in the seventeenth century to allowing girls to express themselves by choosing from a variety of styles in the twenty-first century.

Genres: Fashion, Nonfiction, History, Childrens, Historical

32 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 2005

About the author

Leslie Sills is a sculptor whose work has been shown at the Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston and other museums and galleries throughout the country. She has lectured on art and writing at museums, art schools, universities, colleges, and public schools.

She lives in Brookline, Massachusetts.

Reviews

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

With lots of old and new photographs and well written essays geared toward readers in 2nd - 6th grade, From Rags to Riches is a really cool book. I picked it up from a library display and ended up reading it cover to cover, the entire time thinking of one of my nieces. It was a nice way to spend a morning at the library and a short break from Curious George & various books about Robots, trains, & insects.

[Cass · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have always found it interesting to read about clothing and why we wear what we wear. I am grateful to Amelia Bloomer who popularized the wearing of 'bloomers' which led to women wearing pants. I would hate to have to wear a dress all the time!

[Mikayla Peterson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is fascinating. I don't think I've read anything like this before. My daughter is too young for this book now but I really want to get a copy to show to her when she's a little older.

[Anita · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting read/history/influence.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Have you ever wondered why you dress the way you do? Why you are wearing jeans instead of a very uncomfortable dress with itchy fabric and a corset underneath? It’s because over time, fashion has greatly changed. From Rags to Riches: A History of Girls' Clothing in America does a great job of explaining everything from hoopskirts to blue jeans. The author does a great job of explaining all the different types of fashions that have originated over time. It is very easy to navigate and has chapter headings, titles, what time period that fashion took place in, an index, and a glossary. It is also in order of the time periods (1700, 1750, ect.) There are lots of pictures and sketches that show all of the different clothes, their details, and what they look like. It was very interesting and I learned not only about fashion, but about what it was like living in that time period. I really liked this book, but the author could have improved on a few things. The biggest thing to improve, is that there was a lot more information and pictures in one section, and not nearly as much in the section right after that. Overall, I think this is a great book to read in general or if you are looking for a very detailed and easy to understand book about the history of girl’s fashion.

[Emily Conradi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is divided into historical American time periods, each complete with history and its direct relationship to clothing. This book allows readers to come at history from a different angle, perhaps one of great interest.

This book is very dense. It would be best used in upper-elementary. However, it could be used as a read aloud when discussing specific time periods with younger grades. This book allows students to see that history is more than a list of famous names and dates. History is an account of where our ancestors were and how they lived at a specific place in a specific time. This book could be an excellent companion text when studying any time period in U.S. history.

[LaDawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting little book I picked up on clearance at half-price books. Gives a very broad overview of girls clothing in America. Written on about a junior high level. Lots of interesting photos.

[Bella · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is good for every girl to read because it describes and shows pictures of all American girls fashions throughout history.

[Lily · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was very interesting! but it could of had more information about the clothes in different centurys!

[Angela Scott · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book had some very nice pictures, but I was hoping for a little more information.

[Nina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting.