Girl in Dior

Graphic novels can take a reader where a regular work of non-fiction or a novel can't go. This graphic novel allows the reader to see the process of designing a garment from start to finish. It is also a biography of Christian Dior and at the same time illustrates how a fashion house works. In many ways the text of this graphic novel reminded me of the essays found in magazines. What makes this book unique and wonderful are the illustrations. In them the reader gets the full scope of the revolution in fashion spear pointed by Dior and it also, in a very subtle way, lets the reader know that fashion moved from practical to decorative under the direction of Dior. The book does have it shortcomings. It does not give the reader a clue about show more the business sense of Dior, or any background or insights about his vision, so it should not be taken as a complete biography. It shouldn't be mistaken for one, but it does tell a nice story beautifully. In short, long on beauty. Short on details. show less

Beautifully drawn, short biography of Christian Dior. Some fiction elements that add to the personal impact, lots of interesting fashion terms and further info in the back. Just a gem.

Girl in Dior is the story of the rise of the fashion table Christian Dior. Intermingled into the story is that of a fictional budding journalist Clara Nohant who becomes one of Dior's models and after marrying into British royalty, a customer.

The book is supposed to be a biography of Christian Dior. While his life is covered, the addition of a fictional character, Clara, mars the story and I do not know why the author chose to add her to the story. Clara was not necessary to write a great graphic biography.

The illustrations are exquisite! I would love to see some of them framed and hanging on my walls. The question for many will be whether the price of the book is worth the illustrations given a botched storyline. For me, the answer is show more yes. It was the beauty of the dresses illustrated that made me buy this book. show less

Short and rather bland. It reminded me of a graphic novel I read earlier this year that adapted Proust's "In Search of Lost Time: Swann's Way" to the point that I looked up the author and artist to see if they were the same. I didn't like that graphic novel, so this wasn't a good thing.

Light, bland story with no conflict, really... the story, such as it is, follows a fictional young woman who starts out as a fashion journalist, is fired, becomes a model, quits upon marriage, becomes a widow, and then briefly reconnects with Dior just before his death. This summary gives you about the same amount of emotional depth and resonance as this graphic novel does. The protagonist has 2 distinct traits (likes fashion, especially Dior's, and show more dislikes seeing their modeled garments pawed over by tradesmen), and those aren't even unique in the small cast of characters.

Dior himself seems like he's supposed to be the focus of this story, but again, it's a very light, very cursory look: he opens his store, and we see a couple of shows, and then... .... .... finally, death by heart attack.

The more positive comments here praise the art, but it leaves me cold. Lauren Bacall and Humphrey Bogart make a cameo, and I wouldn't have been able to identify them myself. Marlene Dietrich and Rita Hayworth were a little better, but meh. Characters all looked alike, and the art style is as light a touch as the plot: thin lines, washed-out colors... Even when there are some bold reds or violet in use (rare), they don't come off as vivid and striking, which is a particular shame for a book about (sort of) the rise of Dior. A fashion book begs to have art as striking as the clothes, maybe even moreso if you're trying to capture the same spark of seeing Dior's New Look for the first time, or to convey to movement or texture of different fabrics, the nuances of color...

Also, my main criteria for excellence in graphic novels is: how much does the story told rely on the art to do some heavy lifting? Is it just illustrations of action and who's talking, or are there actions and background events and nuanced body language that really add depth to the characters, the world, the plot, etc? This book does not go beyond simple illustrations. (I did notice, early on, that women at the first show were illustrated to tug down at the skirt hems, but as that was explicitly mentioned in the narration...)

On the plus side, it was very short, and while nothing about it was amazing or inspiring, nothing in it was especially repulsive (as in, not-reading-another-word, fling the book across the room), either. show less

How serendipitous it was to read this book at the same time I read Mrs. 'arris Goes to Paris. Both take on Dior and fashion and Paris as they were, and, read together, complement each other like a good wine with a delicious entree.

The story is simple: a young poor girl is plucked from the crowd to become a fabulous Dior model. It's the stuff of fairy tales, with the girl sent out into the world of the rich and famous where she finds a suitably rich husband and lives a grand life.

But the strength of the book is in the illustrations that make this unusual graphic novel, illustrations of amazing dresses and hats and skirts and hairdos. It's a lovely little peek into a world that doesn't exist any more. And I'm glad I got to visit it.

The art is just beautiful, but the story feels so rushed along. Still an entertaining read and an interesting glimpse into a legends life!

The writing is simplistic but the art if fabulous.