A review by cupiscent
Lost Girls: The Invention of the Flapper by Linda Simon
informative
medium-paced
4.0
I enjoyed this a lot, and it was a fascinating look at a whole lot of social and cultural history around the turn of the twentieth century, but (especially coming after the book on cotton that I read before this one) I sometimes grew weary of being so outraged by the "product of their time" primary-source quotes - in this case, appalling views on gender, and on eugenics and "race suicide" and other charmingly awful racist nonsense. Not that the author supported any of it, and obviously it did exist and people said it, it's just... it's exhausting, how awful people have been and can be. And how terrified they've been of young women for such a long time.
Anyway, there were also plenty of primary-source quotes of young ladies saying things like, "You see, we're quite accustomed to the idea that we have ankles and it doesn't seem that shocking for other people to know as well," so fun was also had, and this was a quick, interesting, and nicely put together exploration.
Anyway, there were also plenty of primary-source quotes of young ladies saying things like, "You see, we're quite accustomed to the idea that we have ankles and it doesn't seem that shocking for other people to know as well," so fun was also had, and this was a quick, interesting, and nicely put together exploration.