Nanaimo-raised Jennifer Croll "could reliably be found at the library, checking out massive stacks of books that scared her babysitters... By high school, Jennifer had abandoned street hockey in favor of going to punk shows, and wore a lot of black." Now living in Vancouver she has reviewed books for Georgia Straight and edited or contributed to publications that include Adbusters, The Block, NYLON and Dazed & Confused. She has worked for online media companies and two book publishers, Annick Press and Greystone Books.

Jennifer Croll's Fashion That Changed the World (Prestel 2014) was followed by a lighter treatment of similar material for Bad Girls of Fashion: Style Rebels from Cleopatra to Lady Gaga (Annick 2016) for readers ten to seventeen. Illustrated by Polish artist Ada Buchholc, it looks at 43 women through the ages who have made an impression by dressing or looking differently--from the likes of Black Panther intellectual Angela Davis to Cleopatra and her intentional mimicry of the Goddess Isis. Other fashion standouts include Frida Kahlo, Marlene Dietrich, Coco Chanel, designer Rei Kawakubo, Bjork, Rihanna, Nicki Minaj, Vogue editor Anna Wintour, riot grrrl Kathleen Hanna and, of course, Madonna and Marilyn Monroe.

Featured in her follow-up, Bad Boys of Fashion: Style Rebels and Renegades Through the Ages (Annick 2019) are: Louis XIV, Oscar Wilde, Marlon Brando, Malcolm X, Andy Warhol, Karl Lagerfeld, Clyde Frazier, Malcolm McLaren, David Bowie, and Kanye West, with shorter biographies on subjects such as Che Guevara, Basquiat, and Prince. Illustrations are by Aneta Pacholska.

Croll’s Art Boozel: Cocktails Inspired by Modern and Contemporary Artists (Chronicle Books $27.95) combines over 50 artist profiles with cocktail recipes inspired by each artist. For example, Frida Kahlo is matched with a tequila-watermelon concoction. Think Andy Warhol and tomatoes, Gustav Klimt and golden turmeric and Georgia O’Keefe with flower syrup. It’s a boozy romp through art history with illustrations by Kelly Shami, an artist and a jewelry designer who lives in New York City.

The follow-up, Dressed to Swill: Runway-Ready Cocktails Inspired by Fashion Icons (Penguin Random House $14.95) contains sixty original cocktail recipes inspired by style icons from the 20th century to today.

BOOKS:

Fashion That Changed the World (Munich/London/New York: Prestel 2014) 9783791347899

Bad Girls of Fashion: Style Rebels from Cleopatra to Lady Gaga (Annick 2016) $16.95 978-1-55451-785-5

Free the Tipple: Kickass Cocktails Inspired by Iconic Women (Penguin Random House, 2018) $14.95 978-3-7913-8404-7. Illustrated by Kelly Shami

Bad Boys of Fashion: Style Rebels and Renegades Through the Ages (Annick 2019) $16.95 9781773212425

Art Boozel: Cocktails Inspired by Modern and Contemporary Artists (Chronicle Books, 2021) $27.95 h.c. 9781797202983. Illustrated by Kelly Shami of New York City

Dressed to Swill: Runway-Ready Cocktails Inspired by Fashion Icons (Penguin RandomHouse, 2022) $14.95 9783791387833. Illustrations by Daiana Ruiz.

[BCBW 2022]