Description
Book SynopsisFrom Leatherette to Naugahyde, men and women have devoted enormous energy to making fake leather seem real. Faux Real explores this borderland of the almost-real, the ersatz, and the fake, illuminating a centuries-old culture war between the authentic and the imitative.
Trade Review"A sound researcher and an engaging writer. . . . Kanigel intelligently takes time to address the philosophical question of the importance of faux versus real." *
Publishers Weekly *
"Fantastic cultural history. Smart and sensual prose. You'll never look at your Manolos the same way again." * Sylvia Nasar, author of
A Beautiful Mind: The Life of Mathematical Genius and Nobel Laureate John Nash *
"Kanigel's book is an easy and pleasurable read. . . . A tribute to leather's physical and tactile properties and to humankind's ingenuity and persistence in attempting to imitate them." *
Design and Culture *
