For assignments requiring research on cultures and customs, fashion and costume information through the eras is frequently needed by middle school students. U ·X ·L 's Fashion, Costume, and Culture: Clothing, Headwear, Body Decorations, and Footwear Through the Ages has all the answers in a comprehensive, chronologically based, affordably priced, four color, 5-vol. set.

With typical U ·X ·L high quality, Fashion, Costume, and Culture provides facts and information about the cultural, religious and social implications of human decoration and adornment throughout history, with a particular emphasis on the decades of the 20th century. In 500 entries, detailed information about clothing, hairstyles, tattoos, jewelry, body piercing, feet binding and other types of fashion or style is examined. Additionally, entries explain the fashion or style within the context of the traditions, customs, rituals or practices it relates to, as well as its significance to society or culture.

Entries follow a standardized format to ensure that students can easily do comparisons. Arranged chronologically, each era, century or decade begins with a short synopsis of the historical highlights. With further division of the information by region, similar nations, countries and cultures are presented together and include an overview broken up with numerous subheads leading students directly to the information they need. For additional ease-of-use, information on specific fashion items and the country or culture that used them is divided into four main topics areas including:

• Clothing
• Footwear
• Hairstyles and headgear
• Body decoration

To ensure relevancy for student research needs, entries were selected based on middle school curriculum, as well as their importance to a particular culture or country. Additionally, Fashion, Costume, and Culture is written at a seventh-grade reading level with difficult terms or concepts explained in each entry. Features include 400 color and black-and-white photos and illustrations; a timeline; words-to-know section; sidebars with related information; sources for further reading; an index; and more. (20040901)