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Review Quotes:
"Caroline Weber weaves her portrait of Marie Antoinette--and pre-revolutionary
France--from the very fabric of the Queen's wardrobe. Here is fashion at its
most cut-throat and history at its most sumptuous; an original, arresting tale,
of high stakes all around."--Stacy Schiff, author of "A Great Improvisation"""
""Queen of Fashion "is a marvelous read. Fascinating in its rich detail yet also
deeply moving, no other book about the tragic Marie Antoinette so captures her
fatal flair for fashion. Caroline Weber not only combines fresh insights with
new material, she also has a dazzling style of writing that most authors would
kill for. This is a book to be read and reread and then passed among
friends."--Amanda Foreman, author of "Georgiana """ "Caroline Weber deftly
details the volatile interplay of fashion and politics during Marie Antoinette's
reign as a sartorial trend-setter. A witty account of fashion as dynastic high
stakes, this rereading of the lead-up to the French Revolution sees the queen's
vestimentary caprices as politically motivated, an ill-fated approach to her
personal disenfranchisement. An original look at a turning point in European
history."--Carolyn Burke, author of "Lee Miller: A Life""" "Caroline Weber's
historical imagination and zest for fashion make for a sparkling take on the
tragic, trendy Queen. Scholarly and entertaining -- a brilliant, wholly original
book."--Kennedy Fraser, author of "The Power of Style""" "Even at its
red-carpet, "who-are-you-wearing?" giddiest, fashion is never trivial. Far from
it. In every pleat and wardrobe malfunction, cultural as well as sexual
definitions constantly stretch and change. But Weber goes further. In her
thrillingfrock-by-frock account, which coincides with Sofia Coppola's biopic
confection starring Kirsten Dunst, she concludes that 'Marie Antoinette helped
invent fashion as a high-stakes political game -- one that she played in dead
earnest, and with deadly results.' And while this book is rigorously researched,
Weber's narrative style is energetic and alive with her own feminine pleasure at
a beautiful dress or an outrageous pouf."--"Entertainment Weekly, "'EW Pick' (A)
"Caroline Weber's "Queen of Fashion" examines Marie Antoinette from an arresting
angle--her theatrical persona as a fashion innovator. Forced to jockey for
position, French courtiers were slaves of fashion, while queens tended to be
more modest and reserved. Fashion flash was practiced instead by the kings'
semi-official mistresses--a role that Weber demonstrates was borrowed by Marie
Antoinette (whose husband had no mistress) and that eventually compromised her
reputation and made it easier for scurrilous pamphleteers to caricature her as a
whore."--Camille Paglia, "The Chronicle of Higher Education"
"It is always gratifying to discover how much a fashion statement can mean, and
Weber's account of the transition from ancien regime to the Republic from a
sartorial point of view is a perceptive work of scholarship that helps to
explain the transcendent importance of fashion to French culture."--"The New
Yorker"
"Wickedly enjoyable."--Horatio Silva, "The New York Times Style Magazine"
"Prodigiously researched ]and( deliciously detailed . . . The generously
illustrated history by Weber posits that the queen's fashion obsession wasn't
about narcissism and frivolity, but self-assertion; even at the guillotine
shecontrolled her image with a radiantly white ensemble. Who knew that in 1909
one could have a dear friend give you a Brazilian shave?"--"Publisher's Weekly
"(starred review)
"Comprehensive, entertaining . . . the fashion segments are fun to read and
researched with consummate attention to detail. When the royal couple is finally
imprisoned, the author does a splendid job of explaining how their political
fall was mirrored in their dress. Her account of the queen's final
appearance--all in glorious white--on the ride to the guillotine carries
enormous poignancy. A briskly written account of a time when high fashion took
death's hand and danced."--"Kirkus Reviews"
Review Quotes:
" Caroline Weber weaves her portrait of Marie Antoinette-- and pre-revolutionary
France-- from the very fabric of the Queen's wardrobe. Here is fashion at its
most cut-throat and history at its most sumptuous; an original, arresting tale,
of high stakes all around." -- Stacy Schiff, author of "A Great Improvisation"""
" "Queen of Fashion "is a marvelous read. Fascinating in its rich detail yet
also deeply moving, no other book about the tragic Marie Antoinette so captures
her fatal flair for fashion. Caroline Weber not only combines fresh insights
with new material, she also has a dazzling style of writing that most authors
would kill for. This is a book to be read and reread and then passed among
friends." -- Amanda Foreman, author of "Georgiana """ " Caroline Weber deftly
details the volatile interplay of fashion and politics during Marie Antoinette's
reign as a sartorial trend-setter. A witty account of fashion as dynastic high
stakes, this rereading of the lead-up to the French Revolution sees the queen's
vestimentary caprices as politically motivated, an ill-fated approach to her
personal disenfranchisement. An original look at a turning point in European
history." -- Carolyn Burke, author of "Lee Miller: A Life""" "Caroline Weber's
historical imagination and zest for fashion make for a sparkling take on the
tragic, trendy Queen. Scholarly and entertaining -- a brilliant, wholly original
book."-- Kennedy Fraser, author of "The Power of Style""" " Even at its
red-carpet, "who-are-you-wearing?" giddiest, fashion is never trivial. Far from
it. In everypleat and wardrobe malfunction, cultural as well as sexual
definitions constantly stretch and change. But Weber goes further. In her
thrilling frock-by-frock account, which coincides with Sofia Coppola's biopic
confection starring Kirsten Dunst, she concludes that 'Marie Antoinette helped
invent fashion as a high-stakes political game -- one that she played in dead
earnest, and with deadly results.' And while this book is rigorously researched,
Weber's narrative style is energetic and alive with her own feminine pleasure at
a beautiful dress or an outrageous pouf." -- "Entertainment Weekly, "' EW Pick'
(A)
" Caroline Weber's "Queen of Fashion" examines Marie Antoinette from an
arresting angle-- her theatrical persona as a fashion innovator. Forced to
jockey for position, French courtiers were slaves of fashion, while queens
tended to be more modest and reserved. Fashion flash was practiced instead by
the kings' semi-official mistresses-- a role that Weber demonstrates was
borrowed by Marie Antoinette (whose husband had no mistress) and that eventually
compromised her reputation and made it easier for scurrilous pamphleteers to
caricature her as a whore." -- Camille Paglia, "The Chronicle of Higher
Education"
" It is always gratifying to discover how much a fashion statement can mean, and
Weber's account of the transition from ancien regime to the Republic from a
sartorial point of view is a perceptive work of scholarship that helps to
explain the transcendent importance of fashion to French culture." -- "The New
Yorker"
" Wickedlyenjoyable." -- Horatio Silva, "The New York Times Style Magazine"
" Prodigiously researched [and] deliciously detailed . . . The generously
illustrated history by Weber posits that the queen's fashion obsession wasn't
about narcissism and frivolity, but self-assertion; even at the guillotine she
controlled her image with a radiantly white ensemble. Who knew that in 1909 one
could have a dear friend give you a Brazilian shave?" -- "Publisher's Weekly
"(starred review)
" Comprehensive, entertaining . . . the fashion segments are fun to read and
researched with consummate attention to detail. When the royal couple is finally
imprisoned, the author does a splendid job of explaining how their political
fall was mirrored in their dress. Her account of the queen's final appearance--
all in glorious white-- on the ride to the guillotine carries enormous
poignancy. A briskly written account of a time when high fashion took death's
hand and danced." -- "Kirkus Reviews"
Review Quotes:
"A perceptive work of scholarship that helps to explain the transcendent
importance of fashion to French culture."--"The New Yorker"
""Queen of Fashion" is as richly imagined as the gowns it describes. . . . As
sociology, it's nothing short of stunning."--"The Washington Post Book World"
"Absorbing, fascinating, a wonderful display of grace and expertise."--"The New
York Review of Books"
"A thrilling frock-by-frock account . . . While this book is rigorously
researched, Weber's narrative style is energetic and alive with her own feminine
pleasure at a beautiful dress or an outrageous pouf."--"Entertainment Weekly"
(grade: A)
"Wickedly enjoyable."--"The New York Times Style Magazine"
Publisher Marketing:
A "Washington Post Book World" Best Book of the Year
When her carriage first crossed over from her native Austria into France,
fourteen-year-old Marie Antoinette was taken out, stripped naked before an
entourage, and dressed in French attire to please the court of her new king. For
a short while, the young girl played the part.
But by the time she took the throne, everything had changed. In "Queen of
Fashion," Caroline Weber tells of the radical restyling that transformed the
young queen into an icon and shaped the future of the nation. With her riding
gear, her white furs, her pouf hairstyles, and her intricate ballroom disguises,
Marie Antoinette came to embody--gloriously and tragically--all the extravagance
of the monarchy.
Review Citations:
- New York Times Book Review10/14/2007 pg. 32 (EAN 9780312427344, Paperback)
- Library Journal Prepub Alert06/01/2006 pg. 90 (EAN 9780805079494, Hardcover)
- Publishers Weekly07/31/2006 pg. 66 (EAN 9780805079494, Hardcover) - *Starred Review
- Kirkus Review - Adult08/01/2006 pg. 776 (EAN 9780805079494, Hardcover)
- Entertainment Weekly09/22/2006 pg. 96 (EAN 9780805079494, Hardcover)
- Library Journal10/01/2006 pg. 70 (EAN 9780805079494, Hardcover)
- Booklist09/15/2006 pg. 11 (EAN 9780805079494, Hardcover)
- New York Times10/15/2006 pg. 15 (EAN 9780805079494, Hardcover)
- New York Review of Books01/11/2007 pg. 59 (EAN 9780805079494, Hardcover)
- Wilson Public Library Catalog01/01/2007 pg. 138 (EAN 9780805079494, Hardcover)
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