The Beautiful Fall: Lagerfeld, Saint Laurent, and Glorious Excess in 1970s Paris
by Alicia Drake
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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 189)
Read in August, 2008
recommends it for:
fashion disciples, francophiles, culture literati
A very dishy transcript of the highs and lows of the lifetimes of the Saint Laurent and Lagerfeld clans and the fierce rivalry between them as well as a very dishy storytelling of the inevitable rise of the fashion world. In the heady times of the 60s to 80s, big changes such as the whole shift from haute couture to ready-to-wear happened as well as some of the more smaller firsts (i.e., elevating the catwalk, women wearing menswear, celebrities receiving invites to shows, etc). With YSL taking ...more
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Read in October, 2007
alicia drake has written the non-fiction version of the amazing adventures of kavalier and clay. this book, a bildingsroman in the truest sense, does a wonderful job of painting the human side of yves saint laurent, karl lagerfeld and their respective coderies, which serves to highlight their dizzing rise to superstardom. by turns hilarious and tragic, drake offers an impressive litany of sources to flesh out this poignant tale. we see saint laurent at the glittery heights of his creativi...more
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I have no idea how Alicia Drake has managed to maintain as long a career as a professional writer as her bio so claims. The history, the backstory and the overall inspiration Yves and Karl gave me from reading this was more than I could ever hope for, but Ms. Drake made it almost impossible to finish this book. She stumbles over herself almost avoiding any semblance of natural narrative. Her lack of interest in syntax left me feeling stupider and even more depressed and lonely than I already was...more
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Read in June, 2007
Chapter One (1954-58)
Standing on stage were the three winners of the International Wool Secretariat fashion design competition of 1954. Two of them were young men dressed almost identically: dark suits, dark ties, white shirts, the very image of apprenticeship propriety. Yves Matthieu-Saint-Laurent, as he was called then, was aged eighteen, recently arrived from Oran, Algeria and winner of the first and third prizes in the dress category. He stepped forward to accept his prizes with all ...more
Standing on stage were the three winners of the International Wool Secretariat fashion design competition of 1954. Two of them were young men dressed almost identically: dark suits, dark ties, white shirts, the very image of apprenticeship propriety. Yves Matthieu-Saint-Laurent, as he was called then, was aged eighteen, recently arrived from Oran, Algeria and winner of the first and third prizes in the dress category. He stepped forward to accept his prizes with all ...more
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Read in March, 2008
I did quite a long review on my livejournal that can be read here.
In short, while fashion is not really my thing, I felt this was a well-written and researched account of the high fashion scene in Paris during the 1970-80s.
More than anything it confirmed that the whole industry is built on an 'Emperor's New Clothes' viewpoint where people gasp in amazement at the cut of a hemline.
Thankfully, Drake doesn't do...more
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Read in April, 2008
recommends it for:
people with kashmere scarves.
Unfortunately, I never managed to finish this book, though attentively sucking in the first two thirds left me with the conviction that now I have a solid understanding of French Fashion of the post war period, which I don't. At the time of reading I was rubbing my back against a coal oven, with two blankets on my lap, in an otherwise unheated apartment. I have fond memories of being totally preoccupied with chit chat about Yves Saint Laurent and Karl Lagerfeld and the likes that winter while th...more
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Read in July, 2007
recommends it for:
fashionistas
overly descriptive writing that begs to be taken to task by an S&M editor experienced in whittling overblown egos down to size.
there are some interesting details about karl lagerfeld (he's actually quite a looker underneath those enormous ever-present sunglasses!) and yves saint laurent (he played tennis in tight short shorts!) amidst the extraneous flowery adjectives that stubbornly infiltrate every sentence like roundup(tm)-resistant weeds. but it will take a lot of free time. and coff...more
there are some interesting details about karl lagerfeld (he's actually quite a looker underneath those enormous ever-present sunglasses!) and yves saint laurent (he played tennis in tight short shorts!) amidst the extraneous flowery adjectives that stubbornly infiltrate every sentence like roundup(tm)-resistant weeds. but it will take a lot of free time. and coff...more
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Read in July, 2008
recommends it for:
fashionistas, contemporary history bufffs, name droppers
With Yves Saint Laurent's recent passing, this book piqued my interest. It's the story of his rise in the 60's and 70's, his circle of influence, and a fascinating history of life in 70's Paris. Karl Lagerfeld is profiled in tandem -
they were friends and became great rivals. It reads almost like a gossip column with a lot of famous people
having been interviewed for it. A fun summer read - especially fo ranyone who loves fashion history.
they were friends and became great rivals. It reads almost like a gossip column with a lot of famous people
having been interviewed for it. A fun summer read - especially fo ranyone who loves fashion history.
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Read in November, 2007
I've been reading a lot of heavy non-fiction lately so a dip into the shallow world of fashion seems appropriate right about now.
This book made me like Lagerfeld a little more, or at least, my idea of him. The author gets a little long winded at times, but she also had a lot of access to members of the Lagerfeld and Sain Laurent cliques which is sort of cool. Also, if I never see the word "chic" in print again, it'll be too soon.
This book made me like Lagerfeld a little more, or at least, my idea of him. The author gets a little long winded at times, but she also had a lot of access to members of the Lagerfeld and Sain Laurent cliques which is sort of cool. Also, if I never see the word "chic" in print again, it'll be too soon.
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Read in October, 2007
Not necessarily about fashion itself (my one criticism is that there's not enough description of the designers' actual work), The Beautiful Fall paints a detailed portrait of the extravagance of Paris fashion in the 1970s, focusing on the rivalry between Karl Lagerfeld and Yves Saint Laurent. Drake writes in an over-the-top style that sounds exactly like how fashion people talk, and the voice complements the story beautifully.
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Read in July, 2008
recommends it for:
fashionistas
one hundred or so pages of this was enough for me .
too many self obsessed gay men and modelly girls with names like loulou de la falaise all behaving badly but what can you expect this is fashion darling . i suppose what grates is the assumption that they are all so talented if not outright geniuses ,when all they do is design and market dresses .
that said the book is well written
too many self obsessed gay men and modelly girls with names like loulou de la falaise all behaving badly but what can you expect this is fashion darling . i suppose what grates is the assumption that they are all so talented if not outright geniuses ,when all they do is design and market dresses .
that said the book is well written
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Read in November, 2007
recommends it for:
fashionistas/social historians
The death of Yves St. Laurent this week reminded me of this great bio of him I read last fall. Alicia Drake documents the rise and fall (and rise) or Yves and Karl Lagerfeld, two very different men who dominated late 20th Century fashion and art. It's incredible to read this book and learn of the vision and influence of these two. Karl is still influencing so much of our culture to this day.
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Read in September, 2007
God the 70's sound glamourous. And this is full of great info for anyone interested in the early days of modern couture. If you're into fashion history there'll be lots of familiar names, and if not, well, it's still pretty interesting. It is a bit long and I found myself flipping to the pictures a few more times than i would have liked, but all in all i enjoyed it.
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Read in February, 2008
Good read. As with most writers of non-fiction, she occasionally pads and digresses. My only real complaint, I would have loved lots more photos - she discusses some incredible fashion and does it well, but I wanted to see what she was talking about. Check out the French documentary, Signe Channel if you can - fascinating stuff about couture and Karl.
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Good and gossipy. A blurb on my paperback copy says something to the effect of "Like US Weekly but in the 70's". The fact that Karl Lagerfeld tried to sue the author for invasion of privacy after it was published makes it even better. I finished it mere days before Yves Saint Laurent passed away, which made it even more interesting.
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Fascinating and deliciously dishy account of the ascents of two fashion designers--Yves Saint Laurent and Karl Lagerfeld. It's entertaining and informative, and Drake does a great job in pulling you in to the designers' worlds. The analysis tends to feel a bit repetitive after a while, but never so much that it deterred my enjoyment.
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Even if you have zero interest in fashion, i still think you'd adore this book, not as frivolous as the warhol diaries but just as exact and hilarious. The whole time I wanted to "dallas style slap" half the people in the book but yet i couldn't stop taking notes and using it as a near future template for how i should act
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Read in March, 2007
recommends it for:
social historians, fashionistas
A brilliant history of two of the greatest forces in fashion of the 20th century.
Yves Saint Laurent and Karl Lagerfield, the friendship, the rivalry, the estrangement
but most importantly the two distinctly different paths that these fashion giants took and the effect they had on fashion and society.
Yves Saint Laurent and Karl Lagerfield, the friendship, the rivalry, the estrangement
but most importantly the two distinctly different paths that these fashion giants took and the effect they had on fashion and society.
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Read in October, 2007
I can never finish fiction books. I was entranced in the beginning by the endless biography about YSL, Karl Lagerfeld and their entwined lives within the 1970's Parisian "it" crowd, but now it's getting redundant and I struggle to finish it. Very interesting and well-written if you're into fashion.
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This reads like a breathless high school term paper written by a star struck kid who just looooves fashion. I hate to say it but I've abandoned it - despite being interested in the topic I just couldn't stomach the style. Maybe I'll pick it up again someday but right now I'll pass.
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