Burns-Ardolino (women's studies and media studies, Clayton State U.) offers an in-depth scholarly analysis of the cultural and social implications of women's foundation garments, from the 1930s to the present. Focusing on garments that shape women's bodies into ideal bodies--bras, girdles, slimmers, and push-up bras, for example, as opposed to underwear and intimate apparel--she discusses cultural values, stigmas, idealized femininity, popular media, fashion and beauty cultures, and social institutions. The study uses a variety of interdisciplinary research methods and sources including the Maidenform Collection in the Smithsonian; 267 interviews with women from a national sample and in-depth interviews with 40 women from varying backgrounds conducted in 1999 and 2000; trade journals, popular magazines articles, and foundationwear ads; and the theories of Butler, Bourdieu, Beauvoir, Foucault, and others. Annotation ©2008 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)