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Anna

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This definitive biography of Anna Wintour chronicles the steep climb of an ambitious young woman who would, with singular and legendary focus, become the most powerful woman in media.

As a child, Anna Wintour was a tomboy with no apparent interest in clothing but, seduced by the miniskirts and bob haircuts of swinging 1960s London, she grew into a fashion-obsessed teenager. Her father, the influential editor of the Evening Standard, loomed large in her life, and once he decided she should become editor in chief of Vogue, she never looked back.

Impatient to start her career, she left high school and got a job at a fashionable boutique in London - an experience that would be the first of many defeats. Undeterred, she found work in the competitive world of magazines, eventually moving to New York. Before long, Anna's journey to Vogue became a battle to ascend, no matter who or what stood in her way. Once she was crowned editor in chief - in one of the stormiest transitions in fashion magazine history - she continued the fight to retain her enviable position, ultimately rising to dominate all of Condé Nast.

Based on extensive interviews with Anna Wintour's closest friends and collaborators, including some of the biggest names in fashion, journalist Amy Odell has crafted the most revealing portrait of Wintour ever published. Weaving Anna's personal story into a larger narrative about the hierarchical dynamics of the fashion industry and the complex world of Condé Nast, Anna charts the relentless ambition of the woman who would become an icon.

“Odell takes her readers behind Wintour's iconic bob and sunglasses in this deeply researched account” SARA GAY FORDEN

©2022 Amy Odell (P)2022 W F Howes
Art & Literature Entertainment & Celebrities Journalists, Editors & Publishers Celebrity England

Critic reviews

“Odell takes her readers behind Wintour's iconic bob and sunglasses in this deeply researched account.” (Sara Gay Forden)

All stars
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I have been waiting for this book to come out for ages and whilst it isn’t awful it’s not great either. It’s a bit, well, meh. There is nothing new in here and no real insight into the enigma that is Anna Wintour. I recognised so many of the quotes from the September Issue and the like that it did make me feel the research was on the lazy side. I’m quite sad about it as I really wanted this book to be great.

Maybe I expected too much..

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Definitely worth a listen, especially now that it’s free. All about her life and how she came up through the ranks and running vogue.

Anna

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Fantastic bio on a cultural icon, Anna Wintour is now a national treasure who has become a character of her character. Truly iconic in every way. There are many fashion icons but there is only one Wintour. Highly recommended.

Busy? Yes. Rude? No just busy.

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Given the personalities and stories that must abound in the world of Vogue I found this to be an efficient run- through of Wintour’s life but a very dull and plodding one. Nothing about her that I hadn’t already heard many times and a narration that hardly enlivens the tedious list of events and people.
The book reads as if it’s trying not to put a foot wrong and gives absolutely nothing away. I’m sure Wintour has/ would thoroughly approved of it!

Disappointing

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A fascinating character and an insight into high fashion. Links to Devil Wears Prada drawn explicitly.

Interesting

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