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In this collection commissioned by Scholder, editorial director of the Feminist Press, nine original essays explore the specific and personal impact of cultural icons—public figures, often celebrities, who become the objects of our everyday obsessions. The contributors—artists, musicians, and novelists in their own right—did not first encounter their respective subjects in history class. Most can pinpoint the exact moment when they became enamored with their idols. For novelist Jill Nelson, it was at age 14 in 1967 when she heard Aretha Franklin’s “Respect” booming from an open car window. Mary Gaitskill’s adoration of Linda Lovelace began at age 17 when she viewed Deep Throat at a hippie film co-op. Singer/songwriter Justin Vivian Bond remembers model Karen Graham’s vacant gaze in a decade’s worth of Estee Lauder advertisements. Yet these essays are not solely homages—they also explore the complicated consequences of putting a person on a pedestal. For example, writer and historian Hanne Blank’s obsession with food writer M.F.K. Fisher in college was wracked with jealousy when Blank realized that her favorite food writer had the sort of graceful physique that she herself lacked. These essays reveal the hidden side of adulation and serve as a reminder that even today’s literary lights once had icons of their own. [em](Oct.) [/em]