The human female form is the brilliant end-point of millions of years of evolution, loaded with amazing adjustments and subtle refinements. It is the most remarkable organism on the planet. At different times and in different places, human societies have tried to improve on nature, modifying and embellishing the female form in a thousand different ways. In this new study, people-watcher Desmond Morris turns his skill and attention to the female form and takes the reader on a guided tour 'from head to toe'. Highlighting the evolutionary functions of biological features that all women share, Morris explores the enhancements and constraints that human societies have developed in the quest for control and perfection of the female form. Written from a zoologist's perspective and packed full of scientific fact, fascinating anecdote and thought-provoking conclusions,The Naked Womanbuilds on Desmond Morris's unrivalled experience as an observer of the human animal.

Desmond Morris was already the author of some fifty scientific papers and seven books before completingThe Naked Apein 1967, which was to sell over 10 million copies throughout the world. He has made many television programmes and films on human and animal behaviour, his friendly and accessible approach making him popular with both adults and children, and he is now one of the best-known presenters of natural history programmes. He is also an accomplished artist.

"An explosive study of the female form" (Mail on Sunday) in the same vein as Morris"s classic Bodywatching>