Grace: A Memoir

Grace Coddington is no literary genius, nor she pretends to be. Her autobiography is written in a simple and mostly linear style, which among a lot of baroque writing is quite refreshing.What we get here is the basic tale of a life less than ordinary. However, despite her many remarkable experiences and glamorous environment, Coddington succeeds at the difficult task of sounding down to heart, or at least a lot less of a snob than one would expect. Still, the name-dropping is endless and her admission of never having read a book in her life make her sound slightly conceited (at best). Moreover, her self-confessed dislike for literature casts a very mercenary shadow over this project.She succeeds at giving enough details about her life, but not so much, as to make you think she is completely self-absorbed. She seems aware of the fact that, having worked with lots of famous people, such as Helmut Newton and David Bailey, the reader wants to know something about them, too. Those expecting juicy gossip about models or Anna Wintour will be disappointed, as Grace is very discreet, although it is clear that she is no doormat and does not like some of her connections.Many photos and cute drawings illustrate the book and leave the reader wanting for more. On a side note, the fact that Grace likes cats and had some grief with snooty French models, made her win an extra point. Otherwise, I would have given the book 2 stars.I would recommend only if you watched The September Issue and are interested in fashion and photography. I follow fashion photography and I find Grace's spreads the most remarkable ever, even if the clothes cannot be worn in real life. But they work wonders as images of a fantasy place I would like to inhabit.

Wonderful memoir from a truly beautiful woman. Great insight into the world of fashion.

I didn't love this book.It started out promising, with a lovely description of childhood summers spent out by the sea. From there, she wanders through her 50 year career and relationships with a vague air of disinterest. She gives her cats a chapter of their own, but skips over life altering events as though she'd rather not talk about them. Isn't that what memoirs are for?She jumps back and forth through time making it difficult to follow. I almost stopped reading several times. She's clearly proud of all the names she can drop, and gives the impression that nothing's more important than who you know. Oddly enough, the only part I liked was her cat chapter,but even that seemed passionless and droll.I wouldn't recommend this unless you are a fashion freak, and know all these people she's talking about.

Fabulous and funny by an amazingly hardworking unconventional stylist, one of the world's leading stylists, who moved from modelling after a horrendous car accident onto the other side of the camera, helping to transform british and american Vogue in the process. engagingly written, conversational in tone, and a wonderful look behind the scenes. How much hard work goes into those ephemeral photographs of fashion perfection, but written with such a light touch.

I, like most, became a grace fan after watching 'the September Issue'. I sat down to read this book on a quiet sunday afternoon and gobbled it up in one sitting. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about grace's earlier life as a model in the swinging 60s and her development into the amazing creative she is today. This is not life changing stuff, its a memoir of a life led in the fashion industry and thoroughly enjoyable it is.