cover image Dress Your Best: The Complete Guide to Finding the Style That's Right for Your Body

Dress Your Best: The Complete Guide to Finding the Style That's Right for Your Body

Clinton Kelly, Stacy London, . . Three Rivers, $18.95 (256pp) ISBN 978-0-307-23671-5

The spunky hosts of TLC's What to Wear present a fashion guide that's empowering, friendly and exceedingly useful. No gimmicky, fruit-related body shape names here—Kelly and London keep things simple. For each of their female body types—"bigger on top," "bigger on the bottom," "a little extra in the middle," "curvy," "not curvy," etc.—there's advice for petite, average height and tall women. (The men's section is equally straightforward if shorter: "tall," "athletic," "barrel-chested," etc.) Kelly and London use positive reinforcement (there are many more "dos" than "don'ts"), and sprinkle "universal tips" applicable to any body type throughout. Each type's section opens with a photo of an average-looking model sporting a basic swimsuit, along with comments from the model and the authors. Although they don't cite brand or store names, Kelly and London give plenty of specific advice: e.g., a straight dress will accentuate curves on an hourglass shape; a jacket with a moderately low "stance" (v-neck) will help the upper body appear longer. Ladies and gentlemen, start your shopping engines—and don't leave home without this book! Agent, John Boswell Management. (Sept.)