{"product_id":"9780061137488","title":"It's In the Bag: What Purses Reveal---and Conceal","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe time is perfect for a short, smart purse book. The \"good bag\" has nudged out shoes, jeans, and jewelry as the must–have fashion possession. Despite price hikes –– $1,445 for a Prada bowler bag that once cost $940 –– the craze for high–end purses helps fuel the booming luxury–goods market and, via knock–offs, hugely influences the $6 billion–a–year mainstream handbag industry. But purse mania isn't just an outgrowth of a strong luxury–goods market –– human thoughts, feelings, and dreams are involved, too. As Nadia, a high–powered interior designer says, \"My cell and my big Tod's purse –– that is my life.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn IT'S IN THE BAG, noted journalist Winifred Gallagher explains it what means for a purse to be a life. This cultural history of the handbag borrows from psychology (Freud noted that sometimes a purse is a vagina –– which is perhaps why the first \"handbags\" were carried by men!), sociology (a purse as a \"status symbol\") and even economics (Why have prices gotten so steep?). Researched and erudite yet always fun, Winifred Gallagher offers in IT'S IN THE BAG a charming theory of modern identity as seen through one of our keenest obsessions.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"HarperCollins Publishers","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47021398294768,"sku":"9780061137488","price":19.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9780061137488_p0.jpg?v=1763769146","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9780061137488","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}