This wonderful exploration of the history of textiles from the earliest days of humanity to the present day emphasizes the ubiquity and necessity of fiber and fabric to everyone. Not only are they key for protection and utility, but as a means for technology as a whole to develop, over and over. For a long time, historians and archaeologists overlooked this everyday technology, which is easy enough to do as many of the tools are not immediately obvious and textiles themselves are not well preserved in many environments. This book rectifies some of this oversight, and is both thorough and easy to comprehend.

The narration is excellent in terms of both clarity and actual voice. The narrator sounds involved with the material, which in turn makes it easier to follow. Faced with a multitude of languages and technical terms, her pronunciation is clear and comprehensible.

History and fabric tied together. I feel like this is something that anyone who works with fashion or history of civilization, need to read this. There is so much I didn't know. How important fabric is to many places. The way it's made affects its meaning. It was enjoyable.

An informative book on the history of fabrics/textile. This is was definitely a piece you can learn from.

Thank you @NetGalley and OrangeSky Audio for giving me the opportunity to listen to this.

Incredibly interesting and detailed; the stuff about pre-history and the technological insight that can be gathered based on a culture's fibres is completely astounding. I appreciated that the exploration continued to smart fabrics etc, and the only part that lost me overall was explaining the ~obvious~ warp and weft counts when weaving; there was A LOT of math and it all went completely over my head. Had this been a physical book with photos rather than an audiobook I think I'd have grasped more of it.

The narrator was Caroline Cole and she has a lovely voice. Very pleasant to listen to.

I received a copy of this audiobook for free from NetGalley and OrangeSky Audio in exchange for an honest, voluntary review.

I'm reviewing the audiobook but I would actually prefer to own the print book, so I will probably buy a copy at some point for my library at work. (I work in a theatre costume department.)

Very informative. The audiobook narrator was not my favorite. It was not a voice I felt comfortable with and so that really slowed down my ability to finish this book. The content however was excellent I’d like to read this in physical form.

A fascinating and well-composed history of the context of textiles in human history.

I enjoy object-based history so long as the object in question is approached largely through social context, and Virginia Postrel does a thorough and lovely job of that here in The Fabric of Civilization.

It’s a good blend of explanation of how the proverbial sausage gets made with why and how it was being made and how that manufacture evolved to meet need and demand.

I find the history of dye to be more interesting than that of fiber (if I may be permitted to generalize), and Postrel gives us an engaging account of both, and satisfied much of my curiosity about some odds and ends of the history of garment dye that I wasn’t previously privy to.

I have also always been fascinated by sumptuary laws, and this book has a great section on that as well.

The audiobook version is excellent, smoothly narrated and enjoyable to digest when read in this format.

Loaded with information but still reading oh so well in a narrative sense, this book is an excellent read if you like micro histories viewed through a macro lens.

4/5 stars

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for providing this audio-arc!

fascinating peak into the fashion industry which i so love

This was fascinating - in parts reminded me of Year 11 in Australia learning about the industrial revolution and it was amazing how much came back to me.

Loved how the story developed of fabric with all the modern developments and the bit re Under Armour was fascinating I never knew that - it puts clothes into a different light.

I choose this audio to help my daughter with GSCE as she is doing textiles and thought it might help her she got details out of it, but in all honestly I think I got more out of it. It was so refreshing and I learnt so much.

The narration was brilliant and so fitted in with the story.

I was given a copy by the publishers and netgalley but the review is entirely my own.

What a fantastic book, this experience was so much more than I expected.
The information was so rich and the narrative really brought the subject material to life and told the story of textiles in a very captivating and accessible manner.
The book is a gem and I really couldn't find much to fault it. I will definitely be recommending this to friends and other textile lovers.

Thank you so much for this opportunity to read in advance.

Huh!!
It had archeological, science and art mixed concepts .. interesting and we'll voice
Definitely recommend for art historical science minds.

I truly loved this book! I am a PhD student in Archaeology, so I am very familiar with the fabric technologies of the ancient Mediterranean. However, I learned so much about current developments in fabric technology and cloth from African nations and south american nations. I loved the stories about the dying techniques and smuggling silk. This book is well-researched, fascinating and still gripping. Well done.

DNF @ 20%
I wanted to like this, but it was too long for me. Super interesting though! Thank you to publishers for sending me an ARC copy of this book!

I love to knit and quilt. I’ve been doing it for around 30 years but the act of making knitted fabric still feels like a wonder. So I jumped at the chance to listen to this book.

The Fabric of Civilization takes us through silk production, how cotton crop varieties were selected for and how technology has made the work of creating fabric from fibers easier and quicker. Each topic felt well described and researched without being too stuffy for a regular reader. The narrator was pleasant- she felt to me like she had the right tone and speed for this type of nonfiction. By the end I’d convinced myself I needed to upgrade my rarely used drop spindle to a full on spinning wheel. I’m not entirely sure I won’t be buying a loom too.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the opportunity to listen to and review this book.

The Fabric of Civilization takes a single topic, fabric, and winds its way throughout history starting in the prehistoric period. My favorite chapters of this book were on the traders and consumers of fabric, because those really dove in more on the historical context and cultures that I was intrigued by in the description. Having not looked at the table on context first, I expected that each chapter/section would be in chronological order on a different culture and how fabric was a staple in their culture, which is not really the focus of the book.

In The Fabric of Civilization, the author separates the book into sections regarding the steps of creation of fabric then concluding with the use of the fabric for civilizations. I was a little surprised by the complex technical descriptions of the harvesting, making, and dyeing of the fabric throughout the book. As an audiobook I had a little trouble with these areas since I do not have any background knowledge of fabric making/weaving. Having the physical book in hand to reread sections would have been much better for my comprehension. However, for those looking to expand their knowledge of the creation of fabric overtime, this book would be a phenomenal resource. I really enjoyed the common thread that was weaved throughout this book (sorry I had to do one fabric pun) and found out some information that I will be utilizing in my Art History courses.

Thank you to NetGalley and Basic Books for granting me a free copy of this audiobook in exchange for my honest review!

This was a mix of history, archaeology, science and art - sure sounded right up my alley! And while it wasn’t really a history of specific fabrics, it did walk the reader through the history of fabric manufacturing. As historically valuable trade goods, fabrics provided the impetus for many discoveries that we might not connect back to cloth - such as accounting, chemistry or computers (this one was too big of a stretch for me). Some chapters were way more interesting (Fibers, Dyes, Innovators) than others (Thread, Fabric, Traders). Overall, I don’t think Postrel is very good at physical descriptions so without any pictures (I had an audio version), there are many setups that seemed to go right over my head. I’d definitely recommend consuming this with your eyeballs.

I voluntarily obtained a digital version of this book free from Netgalley and OrangeSky Audio in exchange for an honest review.

The Fabric of Civilization: How Textiles Made the World
by Virginia Postrel
Audio book, helps to go through this diverse historical text. The author showing the textile industry from the medium to the synthesis of ideas, products and procedures. I found so much cultural explanation and diverse sources for the textile industry. The history of textile starts simple with the creation of thread, to the state of the art labs that have 3 d controlled knitting machines, and robots to indicate the desires of the new lead customers. Like Under-armor, to Spoonflower this entrepreneurial story of textiles, and fashion are interwoven in cultures, and cross-cultural innovation.

Was given an advanced listen in exchange for an honest review thanks to NetGalley

This book is fascinating. Nothing I would normally pick but it’s not only intellectually stimulating but also paints a vivid picture through textiles that transports you throughout the world and time
This books isn’t solely about textiles. It incorporates how history, textiles, language, and prominent events are all linked
I was very invested from start to finish and thoroughly enjoyed this authors style (first book I’ve read from this author)

Yet another volume presenting the history of human civilization through an everyday object - and an interesting addition to this informal, popular series. It is true that we rarely think about such mundane things as textiles, despite the fact that we depend on them so much. I was surprised how little I have known about the origins of cotton, wool or silk, not to mention the techniques required to process them. I also liked the structure of the book - it is not straightforward chronological but divided according to the topic, like thread or dye.

The narrator also did a decent job - her voice is pleasant and it is easy to follow even more complicated parts of the story.

Thanks to the publisher, OrangeSky Audio, and NetGalley for the advance copy of this audiobook.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and OrangeSky Audio for my copy of The Fabric of Civilization How Textiles Made the World by Virginia Postrel Narrated by Caroline Cole in exchange for an honest review. It publishes August 17, 2021.
This was such an informational book that I didn't know I needed in my life. I have been ruminating on this and the concepts and bringing it up in various conversations. I had no clue just how prevalent and important fabric has been.
I really enjoyed the chemistry, the history, and the social implications. I had no clue there were laws, and trade problems and so much drama involved!
If you're interested in world history, you would definitely enjoy this one!
P.S. the narration was very well-done.