Backwards in High Heels: The Impossible Art of Being Female

by Sarah Vine and Tania Kindersley

Book Overview

This smart and frank collection distills the trials and triumphs of being a woman, all in a gifty volume filled with whimsical fullcolor illustrations. In 15 subject-driven chapters relevant to women of all ages, authors Tania Kindersley and Sarah Vine's essays cover topics ranging from feminism to face cream, motherhood to money, and politics to perfection. Titles like "The Danger of Romantic Love," "Why There is No Such Thing as a Guilt-Free Working...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0762438819
• ISBN13: 9780762438815
• Release Date: March 2010
• Publisher: Running Press Adult
• Length: 392 Pages
• Weight: 0.90 lbs.
• Dimensions: 2.0" x 6.3" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

Lovely book about "the impossible art of being female"

I thoroughly enjoyed this collection of witty and insightful essays about the many facets of womanhood. It felt very relatable and down-to-earth. How refreshing to read a book that's not of the perspective that all women are like those you see on tv, movies, and magazines. The essays are like a conversation you would have with a smart and funny girlfriend. Topics include everything from work, love, feminism, friendship, and so much more. The style of the book makes it very approachable. You can read a section here and there when you have a minute. This would make a great gift for the fellow women in your life: mothers, daughters, aunts, friends, etc.

A fun read!

What a FUN book! The title immediately piqued my interest - it's a reference to one of my favorite quotes of all time, attributed to (or about) Ginger Rogers, it's about how Ginger had to do everything Fred Astaire did, only backwards and in high heels (meaning, obviously, that she had to be every bit as talented as he with an added degree or two of difficulty!) I love the design, as well. It's girly but not cutesy; feminine but not weak. It's pink, but a BOLD pink! This book has so much going for it, I don't even know where to start. It offers candid observations, witticisms, and smart and applicable advice on every aspect of being female. The topics that are covered in this thorough tome are Love, Food, Career, Men, Health, Politics, Philosophy of Life and Self-Esteem, Dressing and Shopping, Motherhood and Family, Money, Grief, Age, Beauty, Sex, and possibly the most amusing chapter of them all, The Practical Chapter. This offers actual recipes and some random (but very helpful, astute) nuggets of advice they couldn't fit in elsewhere. This book is NOT "The Rules" nor is it Sex & the City. It may, perhaps, have a bit of "He's Just Not That Into You" thrown in, among other things. (However, if it gets made into a Drew Barrymore movie, I'm going to cry.) It does give great advice on dating, men in general, and every single subject you can think of that relates to a woman's life - and not just one kind of woman but all of them: stay at home moms, career-driven women, singles, marrieds, and everyone in between. I highly recommend this book to ANY woman of ANY age. Everyone should have this on their bookshelf or nightstand. Give it to your mom for Mother's Day, a neighbor for Christmas, your aunt for her birthday, a college-bound daughter or niece. It's fun, educational, inspiring, hilarious, eye-opening, and quite entertaining. This is the book you never knew (or maybe you did know) you needed.

Very wise, very witty and the very thing for every woman to give herself and all her gal pals.

Just plunk this plump (because it's printed on heavy stock), colorful and marvelously well written, designed and illustrated book on your lap and let it open itself to any old page and start there. Maybe you'll land somewhere in the "men" section and come upon the chapter titled "Why you love them even though you don't like it very much when they get ill or don't return your phone calls." Or the career section chapter on "The art of reconciling the fantasy world of work painted for your younger self with the mundane and often alarming adult reality." Or, the beauty section chapter titled "Pots of money; or why perfectly rational women will part with quite astonishing amounts of cash for something they know can't really make that much of a difference." And don't miss: "The absolutely lovely ability that age brings to say no," "The madness of self help," "How to read a fashion magazine without wanting to cut your head off with a penknife" "The confusions of healthy eating," "Why you should marry a hedge fund manager only if you really really can't live without him," "How to stop being a perfectionist" and "Why there is no excuse for bad sex." The authors also endorse your view that your mother doesn't understand you, but have a pretty convincing explanation of why it's not her fault. A section on grief includes a chapter on rejection. There's a good 30 pages on "politics and the new orthodoxy" and 20 on "philosophy of life, self-esteem, and the whole damn thing," along with about a dozen or so recipes and assorted practical tips on such things as how to make your bed, judge character, not panic in social situations, deal with being in the wrong and not take yourself too seriously. This is the American edition of a book written by two forty-something Brits--one married with kids and one not. For more about them and their book you may want to check out Tania Kindersley's blogspot via your search engine. I did and was a little taken aback to learn they feared American women might not 'get' them. To which I say: how could we NOT? And for those of you too young to know to what the book's title refers to it's from a famous quote asking why Fred Astaire got all the credit when Ginger Rogers did everything he did, except backwards and in high heels.

Witty & Wise

In the introduction of this book the authors clearly state that this is "not a self-help book". And it's not. BUT I guarantee you that reading this book will definitely improve your life even if it's in some small minute way or possibly just to give you a good laugh during the time you spend reading it. The writing is witty and at times even laugh-out-loud funny while still managing to offer insightful tidbits along the way. It is a book that every women SHOULD read. And it doesn't hurt that the cover and illustrations throughout the book are lovely too! If you read this book and don't find at least some amount of wisdom or enjoyment out of it, I'd be very surprised. Note: This book was written by British women so at times there will be some "British" expressions or phrases that don't necessarily translate to North American culture but that didn't bother me. In fact, I found the new expressions pretty refreshing and even comical at times.

A Must-Read for Women

Not a self help book. But not a 'pick yourself up by your bootstraps' book either. It's a book written by women, for women, to help us all understand ourselves and each other. To help us celebrate and commiserate the female condition. You won't figure yourself out in this large, easy to read tome. But you will recognize yourself, and recognize your sister, your mother and your best friends (and worst mean girl enemies). The large book is a joy to slip into each night and think on the various subtopics before nodding off. Love for self, girlfriends, guy friends, gay friends and boyfriends are all mused on. What makes a marriage and whether one might be better off alone (in a joyful way) are explored. How we eat and not eat - with all the concurrent guilt and shame - is cast off, in favor of learning a new joyful way to ingest fresh items and enjoy eating once and for all. Creativity. Career. Family Life. Shopping. Nothing is sacred here, as you are getting advice from real women who care about their friends - you. A great gift idea for a beloved mother, sister or gal pal...or just read it for yourself to start getting your head on straight. There is a great deal of humor and compassion here. Having this book is like having the best friend you've always wanted, all to yourself, in one large, easy to read volume.