I really adored this book. It's not written. Instead, it's rather obvious that the editors, George Plimpton and Christopher Hemphill, just sat down with Mrs. Vreeland and let her talk, and then pretty much transcribed the conversation as it had happened. And, boy, can she talk! A mile a minute is a conservative estimate. You zip through this book because you find yourself reading it as quickly as it was said. And it's full of italics! Vreeland's excitement and enthusiasm for whatever it is she's talking about are evident on the page.What a life she led. Raised in a rawther social family, in London and Paris and New York, she married banker Reed Vreeland at the age of nineteen, and he was clearly the love of her life. She knew everyone, from Josephine Baker to Jacqueline Onassis with the Windsors in between, practically invented red, was fashion editor at Harper's Bazaar for twenty-six years and editor-in-chief at Vogue for eight, and ended her career at the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute.Remarks like "Unshined shoes are the end of civilization" and the famous "Pink is the navy blue of India" make Vreeland seem superficial. And, indeed, she herself said that she adored artifice. But she was also a very insightful, practical, intelligent and hard-working woman. She rightly says that the books one has read are the way you find out about a person. And although she says, "I stopped reading -- seriously reading -- years ago, she can talk about Tolstoy and kept The Pillow Book of Sei Shonagon next to her bed. If Chanel brought fashion kicking and screaming into the 20th-century, it was Vreeland (who adored and patronized Chanel) who made it part of the life of the woman-on-the-street.
if you don't know the personality of Diana Vreeland, you may find this book a little over dramatic and an absolute load of baloney.if you do know Diana Vreeland and her outrageous front, her love of tangents and her belief in her lavish gift of a life, then you'll probably find this book fun.I know her personality, she is crazy and majorly over the top and that's what people loved about her. when I started the book I thought it was outlandish and crazy and I didn't know whether I would actually be able to finish it because it all just seemed so ridiculous. the stories she was telling just seemed to be full of names she wished to drop and full of behaviour she deems normal to everyday life. but then I started reading the book as if she were reading it out loud to me (I had her voice in my head - she has a voice that as soon as you'd hear it, you'd know it was her. unique.) only then did I seem to enjoy the book because I remembered the book is all about her outlandish and crazy life, it could never be about anyone else because she was a woman who told stories with an extremely vivid imagination and a sense of absolute conviction, no matter how crazy it would seem to anyone else.if you want to read this book I suggest you do as I did, it made reading much more enjoyable - I felt she was talking straight at me. crazy to imagine it, but just try it and I guarantee it will feel like she's right in the room with you.
What do You think about D.V. (2003)?
The fashion world might never again have such a quirky and original treasure as Diana Vreeland. Not only is this woman a legend in the field of fashion publishing (working at Vogue and Harper's Bazaar during both magazines' heyday), but she is also responsible for a dozen fashion exhibitions at the Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. As Mary Louise Wilson notes in her foreward to this edition, Vreeland had the fortune of living through almost every decade of the twentieth century (1903-1989), so her take on life as part of the fashion elite is made that much more unique when you consider the social changes that she witnessed during her lifetime. This book is a collection of her lifelong observations and personal anecdotes about everyone from designers and actors to royalty, and is related to the reader as one long conversation with Mrs. Vreeland herself, with the air of easy banter at a cocktail or dinner party. Despite her oftentimes scattered thoughts and predilection for straying off on tangents, Vreeland's matter-of-fact tone, humor, and flair for the dramatic make for a very enjoyable read; although I would suggest that the reader take some of her rather far-fetched stories with a grain of salt. Perhaps Mrs. Vreeland herself sums it up best:"Now I exaggerate--always. And, of course, I'm terrible on facts. But a good story...some of the details...are in the imagination. I don't call this lying." (pg. 158)
—Jecka Marie
If I ever have to write my autobiography, I hope that it is 1/10th as brilliant as this one. From page one, Ms. Vreeland engages you with her personality and takes you for a wild ride filled with tall tales through Paris, New York, London, Germany, and Russia. You can tell that she was the life of the party and this reads as if she were sitting down with you in a tete-a-tete, her closest confidant, telling you about her life. Yes, the popular girl is talking to you at the party and you simply cannot pull away. I can't praise this book enough as an excellent read!
—Tatiana
It was fascinating to read about Diana Vreeland's life because it was so glamorous and international. It was interesting to hear her point of view on various topics -- not only fashion, but also relationships, health, careers, etc. She was certainly a unique person, and a creative genius. The book itself is very random, as it just jumps from story to story. She is basically sharing memories and her opinions, there is absolutely no plot or chronology. It's an easy read, and her writing style is very conversational -- almost as if it were a journal. I wonder how much of it is actually true, though. The fact that she "exaggerates to make for a better story" is understandable, but it makes me wonder what parts of her biography are actually true, and what parts are made up. It did not have a lot of substance, but she was a great person to learn about. I share her passion for clothes, and I especially loved the way she talked about her husband, whom she adored.
—Andrea
