Overview

A magnificent work of original research that unravels history through textiles and cloth--how we make it, use it, and what it means to us. How is a handmade fabric helping save an ancient forest? Why is a famous fabric pattern from India best known by the name of a Scottish town? How is a Chinese dragon robe a diagram of the whole universe? What is the difference between how the Greek Fates and the Viking Norns used threads to tell our destiny? In Fabric, bestselling author Victoria Finlay spins us round the globe, weaving stories of our relationship with cloth and asking how and why people through the ages have made it, worn it, invented it, and made symbols out of it. And sometimes why they have fought for it. She beats the inner bark of trees into cloth in Papua New Guinea, fails to handspin cotton in Guatemala, visits tweed weavers at their homes in Harris, and has lessons in patchwork-making in Gee's Bend, Alabama. She began her research just after the deaths of both her parents--and entwined in the threads she found her personal story too. Fabric is not just a material history of our world, but Finlay's own journey through grief and recovery.

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Reviews

Finlay's writing is at once technical, historical, and deeply personal. Like a skilled weaver, she takes many disparate threads and constructs a compelling narrative as informative as it is emotionally engaging. -- New York Times Book Review Subtle, compendious, and rich...If this were just a cultural history of fabric, it would be a fine piece of work. But Finlay weaves another story into the book: she is grieving for her mother. -- Sunday Times (London)

Author Information

Victoria Finlay is the critically acclaimed author of Color: Travels Through the Paintbox and the former arts editor of the South China Morning Post. She studied social anthropology and has travelled around the world in search of stories about her subjects, from color to jewels and fabric. As well as writing, she has worked in international development. Carla Kissane is an Australian-born, Brooklyn-based actor, singer, and audiobook narrator. Whether cozy mystery or thrilling romance, she delights in the power of utterance, and is a lover of stories that weave a tapestry of intricate threads. A solo performer of Shakespearean cabaret, you can view her work at carlakissane.com. Her recent work in NYC includes The Tiniest Thing and Stranded for the Australian Theatre Festival, the solo show Whores & Weeping Women, and the title role in Medea, directed by Miriam Grill. Notable Australian productions include Sondheim's Saturday Night (Australian Premiere), six shows with the Australian Shakespeare Company, and Motherhood The Musical (National Tour).

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