Purse mania has taken the world of fashion by storm, edging out shoes, jeans, and jewelry as the must-have possession. The bag craze reflects a strong luxury goods market, to be sure, but also conveys a contemporary woman's thoughts, feelings, and dreams. According to cultural critic Winifred Gallagher, this everyday object isn't just something a woman has, but an extension of who she is.

It's in the Bag is a short, lively look at handbags-;their history, their lure, and their emotional meaning. Gallagher invites us to explore one seemingly simple object's complex significance to the people who design, produce, market, assess, and use it. We meet high-profile designers who strive to combine talent, perfect timing, recognizable trademarks, personal charisma, and celebrity endorsements in the creation of a must-have "It" bag; fashion editors, the powerful tastemakers who shape our sensibility; psychologists who probe the purse's symbolism; and some very different women who express a range of attitudes about handbags, from an army major's antipathy to a collector's obsession.

Researched and erudite yet always fun, It's in the Bag is a charming look at modern women as seen through one of their keenest cultural obsessions. No fashionista worth her weight in Prada will want to miss this inside look at what's really "in the bag."