The Essence of Style: How the French Invented High Fashion, Fine Food, Chic Cafes, Style, Sophistication, and Glamour

DeJean, a Trustee Professor of French at the University of Pennsylvania, lives between her homes in Philadelphia and Paris. This book, as well as her other seven books on French culture and literature, has grown from her viewpoint as both a Frenchwoman and an American, toying between both cultures. She dissects fourteen aspects of modern material culture; hairdressing, fashion, modeling, shoes, cuisine, cafés, champagne, diamonds, mirrors, street-life, gadgets, interior design, cosmetics, and soirées; each element has a deep reservoir of historical background, as well as an immediate reference and correspondence to contemporary living. Her writing is fun and light-hearted, a book that will soon turn from an assignment to a pleasurable read. Her depictions of our culture is expertly traced with numerous anecdotes and references to Sex and the City, cataloging the nuances of modern day and tying them all back to one flamboyant king: Louis XIV.