Sleeping with the Enemy: Coco Chanel's Secret War Kindle Edition

This work is well named. However, the name does not cover Chanel's treachery in serving the Nazis. Having grown up regarding Chanel as a splendid couturier, and Chanel Number 5 as an especially nice scent, I was disappointed in her virulent antisemitism, although she was far from alone in that. It seemed to be endemic in the upper classes of Western Europe and Britain in the 30s and 40s.Also I found her relationships with men like Winston Churchill and the Duke of Westminster quite surprising. That Churchill, knowing of her perfidious relationship with her German lover, Dinklage, protected her from trial and execution is quite appalling.There is little question that the Russian Revolution and the subsequent murder of the Royal Family horrified those in Europe that such a thing could have happened in any of the countries. Hitler saw Communism as greatly to be feared, as did the British and French. Also, historically German and England together have fought France, barring the First World War. There were remnants of that alliance referred to.It was interesting to learn how well the upper classes fared in Paris, and to see the ordinary people looking through the garbage for food. The pictures with which this book is studded are helpful, although very small on the Kindle.The research that went into this book is extensive. The writing is clear and informative. All in all, a good read.

Overall this was a very good biography about iconic clothes designer, Coco Chanel. It specifically focused on her collaboration with the German Nazi occupiers of France during World War 2, but it was an overall biography as well. The book was very readable and informative with a generous number of photos to accompany it throughout.There are some weaknesses to this book. It started out slowly immediately highlighting Chanel’s traitorous relations in the War — something that was jarring to read right from the start — with very little substantiated facts (at first) to support these assertions. But after that rough start, the book became more biographical in following a chronological approach to her life story. This leads to the next flaw. The book didn’t have much about Chanel’s childhood, which I feel is a pivotal time explaining a lot about her actions and personality later in her life. For an excellent read about this period, I suggest reading Joshua Zeitz’s wonderful book, Flapper, which provides a nuanced section about Chanel’s early life growing up in poverty, eventually being taken under the wing of a religious school. She played loose with the truth about her early life, a characteristic she displayed with aplomb through her long life. Truth was a vague concept to her, it was the drama of her story which most appealed to her.In my view, while collaborating with Nazi’s isn’t a high point in her life story, the facts leading to that moment were in keeping with Coco Chanel’s personal style. She began it successfully getting her nephew released from a Nazi prison camp after he was captured fighting against them early into World War 2. The Nazis who were no fools, used this playing card to extort her services in other ways to further their cause. Later, she unsuccessfully sought the Nazi’s help to rid herself of a contract with her Jewish partners who owned 90% of her hugely profitable perfumery. She was an actively practicing antisemite at this time, something common for those days. Ultimately, she was never convicted of wrong doing as a collaborator and never even went to trial about it, but the evidence of her involvement is tough to ignore. She was masterful in using power players to her advantage, and no one less than her long time friend, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, got the charges and the investigation against her dismissed.What Chanel accomplished in her lifetime was truly miraculous — a true rags to riches story — one where she probably became the world’s most successful and influential designers of the 20th century. She was certainly colorful and was never dull.Overall, I would give this book a 4+. But because this rating system doesn’t use scale, I give it a 4.

Because of what I do, Coco Chanel comes up a LOT. There have been any number of classes I've had to teach about three-piece sleeves and quilted linings in suits, but I am always a little hesitant with mentioning her by name and people want to know why I am so reluctant to use her as an example.This book explains why very, very well. The author does a very good job building a case against Chanel point by point and slowly you begin to realize that, genius aside, she was a terrible person who very may well have been responsible for the deaths of untold numbers of people.I have to admit that I had heard most of this before (hence my coldness to her generally), but not in this way and not with this much detail. I was expecting an explosive "J'accuse!" with bloody detail, but this isn't that. This book slowly circles building layer on layer of her wartime activities that just leave you stunned that she wasn't at least arrested and prosecuted, much less executed for treason.I read other reviews saying that the book is dry and isn't written well and I'd agree to a point. The writing is this odd combination of storytelling and case-building. The switch between the two isn't always that interesting or compelling.Highly recommended and probably a little shocking to those who A. don't know much about France under occupation and B. have only known Chanel as a go-getting brilliant fashion icon. In the first case, well, it was a real mess and there are still families across the country recovering from it... and in the second case... it is very easy to be a go-getting fashion icon and maintain that status throughout the time of the most evil political regime Europe has ever seen - if you are sleeping with them in the Ritz while thousands and thousands of your countrymen are being murdered.The nice thing about this book is that the author doesn't discount the sheer talent the woman had. Before and after the war she was a powerhouse of style and inspiration. He doesn't discount her as a designer, he discounts her as a *person* and it is almost worse. But "Never. Again." means just that and everyone should understand what this woman did with the Nazis when she had a thousand other choices at her fingertips. All the soft bouclé, pearls, and jersey in the world can't cover *that* and make it more elegant. This book is this firm and quiet indictment of a terrible person with a real talent for design, terrible opinions and life choices, and the ability to manipulate her public and take advantage of any situation she could.

Was perfect for the Chanel style reading room

若干作者の思い込みもあるのかな。この時代の女性は何らかの形で依存しなければいきてゆけないし、そういうところにもうすこし触れてほしかったです。

Sleeping with the Enemy Coco Chanel, Nazi Agent by Val Haughan was a very interesting book which I enjoyed as it give me a totally different look into the life of Coco Chanel who was a woman which I always wanted to know more about. This book made it clear that Chanel was indeed a very talented woman but also an extremely selfish woman who was one woman you would not have liked to make an enemy off. There have been other books written about her some of them she helped write but unfortunately in these books she was famous for reinventing her life which made the public be sympathetic towards her, even admire her as a person and she wanted to make herself look as beautiful as her clothes and her designs. As her designs changed the outside appearances of women she wanted to go that one step further and change her past life to a life where she was always happy.The woman which you are shown through reading this book is not a likeable character and though she always seemed to land on her feet no matter what was thrown at her as she was not afraid of using her friendship with people such as Sir Winston Churchill and the Duke of Westminister on the British side and on the German side she made friends of high up officers of the German army she seemed to pass through life without showing any thought for people only for herself. Though it was clear from the book she looked after her family and she would have done anything to make them safe and happy. What is shown in this book which I found to be very interesting are details Prince Edward and his wife Wallis Simpson and their friendship with people such as Hitler and it also made me very thankful he never became King as I do believe we would have been living in a totally different Great Britain from what we know today if he had off been King. Through reading briefly about this couple in this book has made me interested in their life together, I know I will be seeking to read about them as a couple.When I was reading the book the Coco Chanel I read about was a woman who would have made friends with the devil as long as life was made easier for her. She chose her friends who seemed to be more acquaintances than anything else judging them in what she could get out of the friendship and in the German officers case it was a matter off getting through the war with as little trouble or discomfort as possible. It also was clear she thought the Germans were a stronger nation and she accepted at the beginning of the war it was just a matter of time until Britain was defeated.What I really liked about this book was that the author when making any statements about Chanel and her group of acquaintances he constantly backed his information up with proof, at no time did he say anything but yet not prove that it was the truth he was stating.Throughout the book you will learn a lot about those people in Chanel's life from the maids to the highest SS officer but what I really wanted to know was more about Chanel. Yes, I did learn so much more about Chanel which I never knew and I found a lot of it fascinating but at times when he was writing about those people in her life, to be honest that is not what I bought the book for I just wanted to learn as much as I could about Coco Chanel. Though that was not enough to make me take a star off as I really did find this book a book of knowledge of a woman who give to other women a life of style and opulence maybe not in real life but through the clothes she styled and her perfume. We can all dream and when wearing this woman's perfume and clothes gives you an outward confidence to face the outside world what more could we ask for.If you are a total fan of Chanel you might not enjoy this book as it does show a character who clearly used people to her own advances in life but when she got all she needed she could turn on those that did help her just as quick. She clearly did not like the Jews but I feel that was more because of the Wertheimers who played her at her own game and made a lot of money out of Chanel's name and her best selling perfume Chanel No.5.This is not a relaxing book which you would read like a novel this book is based on facts and it would be very good for those that wanted to know more about Chanel without the sugary coating which many books which have been written about her have.This is a very thought provoking book which will give you a totally different look into Chanel's life - she clearly was a woman with a lot of talent but she also was a woman who had a lot of problems. She looked after Number 1 and that was herself and as long as she was happy that is all that mattered, also she thought nothing of using people then turning her back on them when they ran out of uses.It is also a book which will give you an understanding of the House of Chanel and its owner. The book is filled with many photographs which are very interesting, they showed photos of the men in her life and also of her many designs which I loved too look at. Also is shown are members of her family who she was in her own way very loyal too and it was clear they did have deep affection for her.Sleeping with the Enemy, Coco Chanel Sleeping with the Enemy by Val Vaughan is a book I recommend to all those who like books based on facts and who also love Chanel. You will have a totally new look into the life of this very talented woman who was happiest when she was number one in everyone's life.

Informative. Learned a great deal about the Nazi’s at work in France during WW11.At times difficult to get thru with all the names and titles of the players.

I quite enjoyed reading 'Sleeping with the Enemy'. The book has helped me to fill in some of the gaps and it's shed a lot of light on Coco Chanel's 'missing years'. I don't necessarily agree with everything the author wrote, but he did some sterling work and unearthed a plethora of information and some very interesting details.