Pazazz: The Impact and Resonance of White Clothing

by Nina Edwards

"From bridal wear to the Ku Klux Klan, an exploration of the complex meanings of white clothing throughout history; sometimes a symbol of purity but also of class superiority, privilege and the display of leisure."— Bookseller

"A tour d’horizon of white raiment through the ages."— Wall Street Journal


 
 

Genres: History, Nonfiction

224 pages, Hardcover

Published April 7, 2023

About the author

Nina Edwards is a freelance writer and the author of On the Button: The Significance of an Ordinary Item (2011), Weeds (Reaktion, 2015), Offal: A Global History (Reaktion, 2013) and Dressed for War: Uniform, Civilian Clothing and Trappings, 1914-1918 (2014). She lives in London.

Reviews

[Jack]

My review of this book will be forthcoming on The Folklore Podcast website. I'll update with the link once it is live.

[Diane Jeske]

I really enjoy reading about the history of dress and the ways in which it has both shaped and reflected our beliefs about social roles and about the body. So I was intrigued by this book, especially given the continuing prominence of the white wedding gown, with its associations with purity and innocence.

But I was very disappointed. There is no depth here. Rather, we get laundry lists: and they wore white here, and they wore it there, and they wore it on such and such occasions. It was very disorganized as well with themes popping up at disparate places. There are lavish illustrations but they are never referenced in the text! And then there are images referenced but that are not provided! The author often failed to make a case that the use of white in a particular context really meant anything at all. Just not at all a satisfying read.