A gathering of essays and profiles representing 20 years of Judith Thurman¿s celebrated writing, particularly her fascination with human vanity, femininity, and ¿women¿s work¿ -- from haute couture to literature to commanding empires. The subjects are iconic (Jackie, the Brontes, Toni Morrison, Anne Frank) and multifarious (tofu and performance art, pornography and propaganda, kimonos and bulimia); all inspire dazzling displays of craft, wit and intelligence. Here we find explorations of voracity: for sex, food, experience, and transcendence; see how writers from Flaubert to Nadine Gordimer have engaged with history; meet eminent Victorians and the greats of fashion. ¿Thurman never fails to provoke, inspire, captivate, and enlighten.¿.