There is something deeply moving about encountering eighteenth-century women via the things they stitched, wore, cut, drew and painted. Richly detailed, evocative and precise – as well as beautifully illustrated – <i>Material Lives</i> has much in common with the intricate, creative women's work that Dyer studies in this book.

Hannah Greig, University of York, UK

Serena Dyer’s lavishly illustrated and brilliantly researched book calls for us to rethink the immense cultural power of the “needles, brushes, glue and scissors” that four Georgian women used to fashion new versions of history. It is a compelling read.

Alison Matthews David, Ryerson University, Canada

A meticulous, insightful and intimate reconstruction of how four genteel women recorded and memorialized their lives through ‘material life writing’ ... [and] a compelling vision of women’s engagement in the eighteenth-century world of goods as knowledgeable, skilful and creative makers.

Karen Harvey, University of Birmingham, UK