The Allure of Chanel (Pushkin Press Classics)
Description
The story of Coco Chanel in her own words, as told by her to Paul Morand, in a beautfiul new paperback edition
Perfect for fans of the luxurious and exceptional world of Chanel, and of Daniele Bott's landmark book Chanel: Collections and Creations
Coco Chanel invited Paul Morand to visit her in St Moritz at the end of the Second World War when he was given the opportunity to write her memoirs; his notes of their intimate conversations were put away in a drawer and only came to light a year after Chanel's death.
Through Morand's transcription of their conversations, Chanel tells us about her friendship with Misia Sert, the men in her life, her philosophy of fashion and the story behind the legendary Chanel No. 5 perfume.
These memories of Coco Chanel told in her own words artfully sketches the elusive, mysterious and charming woman behind Chanel.
Praise for The Allure of Chanel (Pushkin Press Classics)
“It’s an interesting memoir because it's all about what she thinks not what she did.” —David Patrick Columbia, The New York Social Diary
“Morand was a citizen of the world, with a sharp eye and a neat turn of phrase.”
—The Tablet
“This enchanting, tiny book is the closest anyone can get to a face-to-face with Coco. It’s written in her voice (‘that voice that gushed forth from her mouth like lava’) and in her words (‘those words that crackled like dried vines’), and though it's full of lies, omissions and contradictions, there’s enough raw truth in it to reflect the extraordinary woman who was Chanel, even though glimpsed shard by shard in a broken mirror.
—The Spectator
“Paul Morand recaptures a WWII-era conversation between the author and the fashion icon.”
—Publishers Weekly
“Morand was the all-round aesthete.”
—Nicholas Lezard, Guardian