Lindy Woodhead Knihy

The men who created the first department stores€”what Zola called "great cathedrals of shopping"€”made vast fortunes, but no one understood how shopping could become sexy as well as Mr. Selfridge. In 1909, his department store€”London€™s first and built from scratch€”opened in a glorious burst of publicity, spearheaded by the largest advertising campaign ever mounted in the British press. In his eponymous store, Harry Gordon Selfridge created nothing less than "the theater of retail." His personal life was just as flamboyant€”one of mistresses and mansions, racehorses and yachts. In this revealing narrative, author Lindy Woodhead tells the extraordinary story of a revolution in shopping, depicts the rise and fall of a retail prince, and unravels a slice of social history that will surprise and entertain any woman who loves to shop.

"War Paint" explores the lives and rivalry of beauty industry pioneers Miss Elizabeth Arden and Madame Helena Rubinstein, delving into their personal stories and the cultural impact they had on the cosmetics world during their era.

From the author of MR SELFRIDGE, the glittering story of two remarkable women - Miss Elizabeth Arden and Madame Helena Rubinstein - and their legacy which touches the lives of virtually all women today: the creation of the modern cosmetics and beauty industry.

War Paint is the story of two remarkable women - Miss Elizabeth Arden and Madame Helena Rubinstein. Between them they left an extraordinary legacy which touches the lives of virtually all women today: the creation of the modern cosmetics and beauty industry. War Paint will trace the humble beginnings of both Arden and Rubinstein and examine the forces and influences that drove them. The book will also look at the period in which they lived, without which their phenomenal achievement cannot be truly appreciated. The similarities between the two are intriguing: dedicated to beauty, neither were great beauties themselves. They were both diminutive in size, if not in the size of their ego. They were both born into genteel poverty and were motivated by money and the creation of their businesses, to the exclusion of almost everything else. They were both avid social climbers and desperately thrifty. They also hated each other. This is the story of an industry, of a social movement and of a great rivalry. Gripping, glamorous and totally absorbing, this is social history at its best.

Julian Fellowes' 'Belgravia' is the story of a secret. A secret that unravels behind the porticoed doors of London's grandest postcode. Set in the 1840s when the upper echelons of society began to rub shoulders with the emerging industrial nouveau riche, this novel is peopled by a rich cast of characters