Chanel's Riviera
Life, Love and the Struggle for Survival on the Côte d'Azur, 1930–1944
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4.4 • 5 Ratings
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
'Sex, disappointment and scandal from some of the 20th century's biggest icons all set against an impossibly luxurious and elegant French backdrop . . . You'll come away both better informed and utterly transported' Stylist
'Tales of glamour, decadence and survival . . . A peek, at once envious and satisfyingly censorious, at the lifestyles of the rich and famous' Washington Post
Featuring a sparkling cast of artists, writers and historical figures including Winston Churchill, Daisy Fellowes, Salvador Dalí, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, Eileen Gray and Edith Wharton, with the enigmatic Coco Chanel at its heart, CHANEL'S RIVIERA is a captivating account of a period that saw some of the deepest extremes of luxury and terror in the whole of the twentieth century.
From Chanel's first summer at her Roquebrune villa La Pausa (in the later years with her German lover) amid the glamour of the pre-war parties and casinos in Antibes, Nice and Cannes to the horrors of evacuation and the displacement of thousands of families during the Second World War, CHANEL'S RIVIERA explores the fascinating world of the Cote d'Azur elite in the 1930s and 1940s. Enriched with much original research, it is social history that brings the experiences of both rich and poor, protected and persecuted, to vivid life.
Customer Reviews
Chanel four
3.5 stars
Author
British writer, journalist and book reviewer. Has written a number of biographies. Costa award judge.
Summary
If you are after a biography of Coco Chanel, look elsewhere. This is a biography of the French Riviera in its hey-day: glitz, glamor, the Duke and Duchess Windsor, Picasso, Huxley, the Kennedys, Picasso, the list goes on. Emphasis on the Brits who haunted the place. It's also a fine portrait of what the dark decade that was the 1930s was like for those who were rich enough to be divorced from reality.
Prose
Precise, clear, and crisp in the best traditions of fine journalism.
Bottom line
Interesting, although you need to watch your feet. Some many names are dropped, you might get injured. That being said, I find it depressing that the Brits take on glitz and glamour nowadays is Love Island UK.