Fabric : The Hidden History of the Material World

Highly personal and tactile ... fascinating ... Subtle, compendious and rich, if this was just a cultural history of fabric it would be a fine piece of work. But Finlay weaves another story into the book: she is grieving for her mother. Sometimes the joins between the two narratives feel a little raw - but cleverly so. More often the book acquires an extra dimension; the effect that springs to mind is the strange iridescence of that twin-coloured silk you sometimes find as the lining of a suit jacket ... This book recovers that relatively silenced or at least sidelined history (of women). It is an emotive and serious work of what you might call history on the distaff side. -- James McConnachie * The Sunday Times *There's something in this wonderfully packed haberdasher's shop for every reader ... Victoria Finlay provides a closely woven warp and weft of answers to questions we never thought to ask, and the pictures in her intricate tapestry are dazzling. An intrepid traveller whose best-selling books already explored the magical worlds of colour and of jewels, she now turns her infinitely curious mind to fabric ... All plans had to be put on hold as the grieving daughter felt "lost and fractured into small pieces". Those "pieces" eventually became the elements of the patchwork she and her mother had promised themselves they would one day create together - and combine to turn the beautifully written narrative of this book into a larger patchwork of healing ... Finlay's adventures, vividly recounted, make enthralling reading ... This book is equally an inspiration and an education -- Bel Mooney * Daily Mail *I am wildly impressed by the depth of her research and the stories she finds -- Alexandra Shulman, journalist and bestselling author of Clothes... And Other Things That Matter A gorgeous adventure through the history of cloth weaving together disparate countries and stories in the most fascinating (and personal) of ways * Stylist * Poetically profound -- Sheila HicksEnthralling and sumptuously spun narrative history of how and why people around the world have made, used and worn different kinds of fabric. Beginning her research shortly after the death of her parents, Finlay finds her own story of love and grief entwined in the threads too, making for a fine blend indeed -- Caroline Sanderson, Non-Fiction Editor's Choice for November * The Bookseller * Fabrics can be a clue to what is underneath the surface. The word "clue" itself comes from the Greek name for a ball of yarn that can be wound back to show the right path. The stories of fabrics, the histories of them, are about endeavour and work and secrets and feuds and inventions and abuse and beauty and ugliness, and sometimes they are about tenderness. -- Victoria Finlay Praise for Victoria Finlay -- -Her curiosity is inexhaustible, her reading wide, and her writing style a delight * Sunday Telegraph *A highly companionable guide, adventurous and romantic * Independent on Sunday *This is a rare and wonderful book - a model of erudition and charm, the writing elegant and precise, and with at least one new and fascinating revelation on every single page. -- Simon Winchester