Member Reviews
"When two young rising stars—Hubert de Givenchy and Audrey Hepburn—cross paths for the first time—it's magic . . . literally, the perfect fit!
All the famous ladies want a Givenchy dress—actresses, opera singers, princesses and the wife of a president. When Audrey Hepburn has to figure what to wear for her next movie, she approaches Givenchy, but he's too busy to design something just for her. When encourages her to try on clothing from within his collection, they're both stunned by what they discover.
Philip Hopman brings us a stylish and compelling picture book about fashion and friendship that fits like a glove!"
Adorable!
This was a really cute and quick read. It told the story of a great friendship between two great creative minds. I really loved reading this. I want to get this book to read to my children.
This was a cute book. It is pretty short, so you can get through it quickly. As a teacher, I would probably purchase this to go in my classroom library in our biography section. I think that most kids won't know who Audrey Hepburn is, so it would give them a little knowledge about her. I think this would definitely be for younger students.
A picture book biography of actress Audrey Hepburn and designer Hubert de Givenchy, and how their paths crossed to form a classic look and lifelong friendship.
A picture book biography of actress Audrey Hepburn and designer Hubert de Givenchy, and how their paths crossed to form a classic look and lifelong friendship.
I doubt many of the target age group will have heard of either the actress or the designer (of the two, more likely the designer because of his ongoing brand). However, I can see this being a fantastic way for a parent and child or grandparent and child to bond. The adults can use this book to introduce kids to an actress and/or stylist they loved growing up and a bond can form in the newly shared love. Adults are going to recognize the famous people mentioned, and the famous films nodded to by outfits that Audrey wears (all the dresses Audrey is wearing that just aren’t quite right for <i>Breakfast at Tiffany’s</i> are classic movie outfits and one is a dress Audrey actually wore in another movie, <i>My Fair Lady</i>). There have been a couple designer picture book biographies of late, but no classic movie stars have gotten a book yet that I’m aware of. This could be a nice new trend that encourages intergenerational bonding. The illustration style is quite cute too. The only challenge may be in the way the book is laid out. Often there’s a top section that goes across the entire page spread related to Hubert’s story and the bottom section is Audrey’s story so you sometimes don’t read it like the average book, but I think readers will catch on thanks to the positioning of the text and illustrations. Recommended to classic movie fans who want to introduce the younger generation to one of their favorite actresses. We’ll likely purchase this for our school library.
I loved reading this book and see the relationship develop between Audrey Hepburn and Givenchy
I loved how this story not only gave a little bit of back story about both Givenchy, but Hepburn as well. We see what they came from and how they became world famous.
We see how they became fast friends and even though they had an unusual start how they Givenchy helped Hepburn feel comfortable in her own skin and gave her the confidence she needed in the acting world. For once we also see Hepburn's charity work mentioned and even Givenchy and Hepburn in their older years still being friends.
It's a nice simply story with beautiful illustrations that not only show the fashion of the times, but how the simplest pieces really became classics.
This is a wordless picture book that is supposed to be a tribute to Audrey Hepburn. Let me tell you it NEEDS words. The illustrations are beautiful watercolors of her dresses and her life, but there is no flow to the story that this reader can find. I’m not an Audrey historian, so besides a stream of black dresses and general knowledge of her film history, this story makes no sense. Please add words.
Cute, sweet book about Hubert de Givenchy and Audrey Hepburn's relationship. Lovely illustrations and clear, simple language. Nice!
Though beautifully illustrated I couldn't figure out who this book was really for. Children? Fashion insiders? Hepburn fans?
An irresistible look at one of the most unknown friendships that was truly made in fashion heaven.
A charming tale of how Hubert de Givenchy and Audrey Hepburn, a fashion designer and an actress came to have a fashionable career and relationship together.
Simple, but charming illustrations accompany the writing.
*thank you to NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*
4 stars.
I gave this an extra star just for the fact that its about Audrey Hepburn.
I have been a fan of Audrey for a long time now. Love all her movies that I've seen and I admire all her work she has done in disadvantaged countries. This book is quite cute and although its short, its a good childrens book. I like her friendship with Hubert de Givenchy. The illustrations are basic, sketch style but for Audrey, thats a great fit. The cover really caught my eye. A nice book for all of Audrey Hepburn's fans and for little readers.
An unusual story about the friendship between Audrey Hepburn and Givenchy, a fashion designer. Their dual stories play out one above the other, from childhood—with his mom being positive about him wanting to be a fashion designer while her mom tells her she’ll never be a ballerina—on through their careers and their eventual meeting. Once she becomes famous she brings him along.
But the story doesn’t always make sense. On one page he says he doesn’t have time to design for her, but she can buy from the rack; next page it says she appeared in Breakfast at Tiffany’s in dresses he designed for her. An editor missed that blooper.
The artwork is in a broad 60s watercolor style. In some ways this is indeed for kids, especially in the prose, but at the same time it seems more geared for adults.
Fine, adept, and clever illustrations grace the pages of this children's book about a famous actress, a fashionista and her favorite designer. Not all parents will approve of innuendo/values presented by some of the otherwise stunning illustrations. We really did like the majority of them but we'll need to pass on this book. We can appreciate art and a good story while disapproving of aspects of content.
The art for this book was cute (although the drawing of Audrey doesn't look much like Audrey), but to be honest, I'm not a fan of much else. I didn't enjoy the layout of this book at all. I think that it could have been laid out more smoothly- perhaps by putting Audrey's story opposite Hubert's rather than on the same page. The story left something to be desired.
Have been a fan of both Audrey & Hubert since being a child/teen both as individuals and also the longstanding friendship that they had with one another.
This books offers an introduction to their separate and intertwined lives for children & young adults, which will be a good starting point to discover more about these two icons of cinema and fashion. Really enjoyed the style of this book, and the illustrations are lovely. Would definitely purchase for myself not just children & young adults!
What a lovely book! I swooned over the illustrations, and I enjoyed learning more about Givenchy. It's always wonderful to read about Audrey Hepburn, and the combination of the clear and simple text with the beautiful fashion illustrations is delightful.
This is not a children's book, unless that child loves watching old movies from the 1950s and 1960s. If they don't have this background I'm not sure if they could get all the little in-jokes this book provides. I'm not sure if they would get the same delight in seeing Audrey wearing costumes from Auntie Mame, Gigi, Judy Garland in the Wizard of Oz.
The story is sweet, and tells of how Audrey Hepburn, at the start of her career, wanted to get dresses from Givenchy, but when she got to his studio, all he had were off-the-rack to offer her, but they fit her, and she loved them.
The book, originally from the Dutch, was written because of an exhibit of Givenchy's clothing. Givenchy clothed Jackie Kennedy, and Wallis Simpson, and of course, Audrey.
So, for all you who love old movies, this is a very cute, well illustrated book.
Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.