Book review of The Dressmaker of Paris by Georgia Kaufmann

The Dressmaker of Paris by Georgia Kaufmann

My review today is for The Dressmaker of Paris by Georgia Kaufmann.

 

Rosa Kusstatscher has reached a pivotal moment in her life. From a troubled and difficult childhood, she went on to build a global fashion empire that has taken her around the world, but there are some things from her past she’s never shared. As she prepares for an important meeting, she opens up and each chapter of her life begins with an observation of something in her bathroom that she couldn’t be without, be it nail varnish, cotton wool or aspirin. Its presence triggers a memory, and the next instalment of her story unfurls.

 

I found her an intriguing character from the beginning. We don’t really get introduced to present day Rosa, and it takes almost the entire book before we discover who she is talking to, where she is off to and why it is so difficult to choose just the right look. The book moves at the gentle pace of an older lady remembering an extraordinary life. We meet those who let her down and those who helped her move on, those who loved her and guided her, and those who left her. 

 

As well as Paris, this book took me to some unexpected locations including the Nazi invasion of an Italian mountain village, Switzerland, Brazil and New York. Rosa became good at running away, but Paris was where she found her niche in the fashion world and turned her life around. She may have gone on to make her fortune, but the price she had to pay was a high one and it took a lot more running and searching before she found peace in her heart. 

 

Rosa’s story was one that stayed with me long after I put the book down each night. As well as the glamour and love, alongside hard work, high risks and heartbreak, there was always something to ponder on as I tried to work out where her story was going.

 

If you are looking for a book to draw you in, that will give you history, travel, fashion and love, then The Dressmaker of Paris should tick all these boxes and more. 

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