Poodles, pencils, minis and skorts

Can there really be an entire book on the skirt? The answer is yes – and it's a fun read to boot. "The Long (and Short) of It: The Madcap History of the Skirt" (HarperCollins, 2007; $14.95) by Seattleite Ali Basye, is a clever little tome that traces the history of the skirt from the loin cloth to bustled skirts, skorts, and pencil styles to the low-rise mini. (Hmm, the last is suspiciously like the first.)

Lest you think this is just another girl book with a pink cover, open to any page and you'll be pleasantly surprised. Basye thoroughly researched the topic and includes all kinds of interesting little tidbits like the skirt styles of the First Ladies and the evolution of the poodle skirt. Basye uncovers historical facts such as laws governing appropriate behavior in the skirt. For example, ladies in 19th-century Michigan could not lift their skirts higher than 6 inches when walking through a mud puddle and in the 1960s nations including Madagascar and Swaziland outlawed the miniskirt.

The book is packed with colorful illustrations by Leela Corman. All in all, this compact little book (6 and a half by 4 and a quarter inches, 176 pages) makes for a very cute girl gift. Available at local bookstores and www.amazon.com.

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