As the name implies, this two-volume encyclopedia has an international focus and examines not just the clothes themselves but also the history, culture, and society surrounding them. The 313 major entries, arranged alphabetically, cover diverse topics such as accessories, period clothing, fabrics, fashion designers, manufacturing, traditions, holidays, national clothing, and more. Main entries contain subheadings that examine a topic from several angles. For example, within the entry for “Ethnic and National Dress,” there are subheadings for “Symbolic Expression,” “Nationalism and Politics,” and “Global Market.”

This focus is not exactly unique. In fact there are several recent reference works that concentrate on world fashion and clothing, like the Encyclopedia of Clothing and Fashion (Scribner, 2005), The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Clothing through World History (Greenwood, 2008), and the Berg Encyclopedia of World Dress and Fashion (Berg, 2010). This encyclopedia seems more suitable to high school and college students because it’s more compact than the ones previously mentioned, and it has several features that will be helpful for students who are writing papers. These useful features include a topic finder at the beginning of the book that can be used to narrow a broad topic down to something more specific (for instance you would find “mourning attire” under “clothing types”), a chronology covering events from 100,000 BCE to the present day, a glossary of eighty-two common terms, and a bibliography of primary sources, secondary sources, and websites.

In addition to the above features, most individual entries have a further readings section and list related topics under “see also.” A general index can also be used to discover references to a variety of people and topics. This encyclopedia is easy to use and provides valuable context for clothing and fashion. The one weakness is that despite fashion being a topic that benefits from illustrations, images are sparse, and none are in color. Still it is recommended for public libraries, high school libraries, and most universities and colleges.