The Beautiful Fall

Fashion, Genius, and Glorious Excess in 1970s Paris

By: Alicia Drake

Narrated by: Bernadette Dunne

Length: 16 hrs and 19 mins

Publisher's summary

In the 1970s, Paris fashion exploded like a champagne bottle left out in the sun. Amid sequins and longing, celebrities and aspirants flocked to the heart of chic, and Paris became a hothouse of revelry, intrigue, and searing ambition. At the center of it all were fashion’s most beloved luminaries - Yves Saint Laurent, the reclusive enfant terrible, and Karl Lagerfeld, the flamboyant freelancer with a talent for reinvention - and they divided Paris into two fabulous halves. Their enduring rivalry is chronicled in this dazzling exposé of an era: of social ambitions, shared obsessions, and the mesmerizing quest for beauty.

Alicia Drake writes regularly for publications including the International Herald Tribune, British Vogue, Travel and Leisure, and W magazine, for which she was a contributing editor. She has lived and worked in Paris for the last ten years.

©2006 Alicia Drake (P)2012 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

“Deliciously dramatic… The Beautiful Fall crackles with excitement.” ( New York Times Book Review)

“Fascinating.” ( New York Times)

“[It] moves stylishly forward, with frequent overtheshoulder glances at some very dishy background…A story constructed as exquisitely as a couture dress.” ( Boston Globe)

Great even if you know nothing about fashion

I love business biographies and this is a great one. Try it, you’ll like it

Use It Up, Wear It Out

Alicia Drake did a good job of piecing together interviews, gossip, and research to create this book. However, the result is very empty and shallow. I waited to write this review hoping that I would change my mind or that I would gain some great insights to share. The IDEA of this book was good - the tale of two hugely successful fashion designers and the ways that their relationship changed them from friends into bitter rivals. I got the sense that the writer chose the easiest path - using gossip and dishy interviews- instead of bringing any kind of insight or compassion to the piece. It is true that there was a lot of excess and shallowness in the 1970's. It was also a time of tremendous creativity and social change. This book was an opportunity to increase the level of understanding about all of this and that opportunity was missed. 

Fun and immersive -- despite the narrator

An entertaining and informative odyssey through the decadent, hedonistic, and creative world of Paris fashion in the '70s, with an exciting and comprehensive emphasis on YSL and Karl Lagerfeld. But I will never understand why -- for a book that is so obviously focused on France and the French -- would this be given to a narrator who clearly has NO clue as to how to pronounce French words and names, and pronounces them inconsistently throughout, to boot? At the very least, one would expect a reader to make the teensiest effort to check on pronunciations before rattling off words and names?
I was literally gritting my teeth through much of this. At the very least, learn to pronounce "couture." Gaaah.
But a good listen anyway.

Fascinating life of King Karl and YSL

In my opinion, King Karl is one of the most fascinating people on the planet. This book was a thrilling listen. To get insight on the juxtaposition of YSL and King Karl in their creative process/lifestyle/ indulgences was brilliant. I loved this listen.

Interesting

Interesting to learn about talent artist's success story and how it can be so inspiring and sad at the same time.

Very good except wrong French pronounciations

It's coo-ture, not coe-ture. She gets it right with "boutique," so not sure how "couture" got off the rails. Otherwise, an entertaining story.

Beautiful, Glorious, Chic.

Terrific, well written, well read story of the genius that was couture, Yves St Laurent and Karl Lagerfeld. Really satisfies that craving for tales of exotic and immense beauty, talent, envy, creativity and gossip that we all desire. If you’re interested in fashion, Paris, elegance or decadence, you’ll enjoy this. Bon appetit!

Sets the scene beautifully

This is a very detailed story of Saint Laurent & Lagerfeld. It sets the tone and scene of the time quite well. Definitely seems to be more favorable to Yves.

Less fashion; more social life

I didn't learn much about fashion, it's more about the social life of the jet set crowds surrounding YSL and Karl Lagerfeld. The narrator struggles to pronounce French and German words which are rampant in the book. Overall it was okay.

Mispronunciations Abound

I've always like Bernadette Dunne's deep, intelligent and fluent voice, but someone should have told her that 'ou' in Parisian French is 'oo' as in 'fool', not 'oh.' 'Couture' should sound more or less like 'coo-tyure'. St. Laurent's muse Betty Catroux's name rhymes more or less with 'ah-choo' or 'Ah,TRUE! The word and the name appear at least a hundred times each throughout the book, so Dunne's faulty vowel is impossible to ignore. Otherwise, and except for the lack of the guttural 'r' of native French speakers and calling a central figure in the book 'Jock' when his name is Jacques, Dunne shows a passing familiarity with French pronunciation and syllable stress. This is not to say French people in different regions may not veer away from Parisian French, but these consistent mistakes are most annoying. A shame. The book has wonderful quotes from people who knew St. Laurent and Lagerfeld well over many years. It answers all my questions about these enigmatic, brilliant and self-absorbed fashion giants. I was surprised to discover how candid their closest muses, friends and business associates were in interviews with Drake and others that Drake quotes from. I appreciate the author's clear-eyed appraisal of the men's work at different periods of their careers. I find Drake generous towards both of them and even towards the dissolute object of their jealous desire, the dandy Jacques de Bacher. A good, honest piece of work by a fashion journalist. This is rare among the hoard of cheerleaders who go to lengths never to let their readers know when a designer collection, or the designer's entire oeuvre, isn't good.