GENUINE AUTHENTIC: The Real Life of Ralph Lauren
Michael
Gross, . . HarperCollins, $25.95 (416pp) ISBN 978-0-06-019904-3
https://www.publishersweekly.com/9780060199043
Like his
previous book, Model, Gross's new work will undoubtedly be mined for the more
gossipy nuggets embedded in his meticulous research and artful prose. This is a
shame, because the crackerjack journalist simultaneously tells a compelling
story and gives it meat enough to be satisfying. It does help, however, that
his subject is intriguing enough to fill multiple volumes. Lauren (né Lifshitz)
embodied a certain kind of American dream from early childhood, a kid who
didn't just want to be rich, but to be of the rich, a Jay Gatsby made manifest
who didn't have a penny, but fantasized about expensive cars, lush vacation
spots and preppy girls in loafers. Gross details Lauren's story
chronologically, and with a resolute pace: the icon's tale of ambition and
meteoric rise unfolds smoothly as the awkward Jewish boy grows into the
personification of grim determination. Gross provides surprisingly little
commentary, given the book's slightly bitter introduction about Lauren's
ping-ponging relationship to the project. What Gross does offer is a rich
portrait not just of Lauren, but of the Bronx in the early and mid-20th
century, the type of class clash that transcends time or place and the effects
of ambition on a teenager who hates his name and burns with desire whenever a
Rolls-Royce cruises by. There are passages that will delight the
celebrity-obsessed, but the full story is much richer. Most importantly, and
delightfully, Gross delivers a portrait of a man who's constructed a flawless
image, but whose real self is far more fascinating and deeply human. Photos.
(Feb.)
Forecast:This
is the second book on the designer being published this month—the other one is
Colin McDowell's oversized, illustrated Ralph Lauren (Forecasts, Jan. 27). The
two books have already been jointly reviewed in the New York Times; fashion
glossies will surely do the same. Lauren is currently celebrating his 35th year
in the fashion biz.
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