Gods and Kings: The Rise and Fall of Alexander McQueen and John Galliano

A british phrase indicating differences, this might be cheese and chalk. Cheese sometimes glorious sometimes smelly for Galliano, genius of marketing and chalk for McQueen as used by tailors which he once was with a penchant for madness. Yet ironically similarities do appear, losing their biggest backers at least emotionally Isabella Blow for McQueen and Steven Robinson for Galliano within weeks. Savage beauty, post mortem tribute to McQueen applies to John as well, as he only behaved in a French courtroom.

Gods and Kings is an excellent chronicle of the lives of two fashion superstars and the toll it took on their lives. Recognized as wunder kinds for their vision and crafting abilities, they never grew beyond their fame to quiet their personnal demons. McQueen silenced his by committing suicide and Galliano through career suicide. Their stories are interesting because their lives intersected at school in a similar path to fame and success. They crashed at the same time with Galliano left standing, more or less. Left me with the impression that while true creativity is a little crazy it destroys when it is all crazy or certainly did in the case of these two men. All in all an interesting book.

This book was fascinating to read, and I am not all that interested in couture fashion. The rise of two gay men from humble beginnings to wealth and power was what kept me clicking through the pages. But I now understand a little better why designers show outrageous creations on the runway, how the fashion houses make money, and how much pressure the star designers are under. Note: If you read this on Kindle, be aware that pictures of the designers and their creations are at the end of the file.

The great thing about this book is that is brings back the days when fashion was this inventive and creative - especially the work of Alexander McQueen - and fortunately, the Web has all of his shows, so you can go back and view them again. Unfortunately, the writing is a slog. So many potentially great stories were suggested and then never followed up on. This was written by a journalist with an eye for details, who, what, when and where and she lists them all, but fails to develop anything beyond the surface. Unfortunately, both men come off looking like monsters although the writing makes one more sympathetic toward McQueen. Unless you are a dedicated fan of fashion, this book will bore you.

The book is very well written. I worked in fashion in the same period as Galliano and McQueenand met Galliano at the beginning of his career. I remember thinking he would make his mark in fashion. When you go up the ladder be kind to people because when you you go down you might meet them again. He failed to remain humble.McQueen also forgot who helped him to succeed like ; Isabella Blow in her own right was a genius.Alexander McQueen was a true artist and genius.Galliano had other problems then a racism and I am glad the fashion industry has given him a new beginning

If you are interested in the world of fashion and what made these two young men grow into icons and what caused their early demise, this author tells a fascinating and detailed story of a world of money, drugs and sex fueled on beauty, art and talent.

Couldn't stop reading. A fascinating and compulsive read offering an intimate look into the lives of two of the most famous men in fashion today. I am not an avid follower of fashion and both men were known to me only in name prior to reading this book. The genius of Dana Thomas is that as a full-on fashion insider, she is able to not only share that world through her words, but to make you truly care for these two men and their tumultuous and ultimately tragic life stories.

I recommend this book to anyone who is interested in fashion and the business of fashion. These two men, very similar yet very different, led incredible lives and in McQueens case, a very tragic end. We shall see what will happen to Galliano, but I am afraid he is done.I applaud the author, she keeps everything moving, the book is very interesting and her writing makes you want more. This is a marvelous book. A tragic story for both of these men, but a marvelous read.

The book speaks generally about Galliano & McQueen. Mostly, it's a whole lot of name dropping and the ugly insides of the fashion industry. Oddly, Galliano's story is very poorly written. The timelines are random, making it hard to follow. The book comes across like magazine articles pieced together, rather than a true biography of either designer.

Loved the book! I just couldn’t wait to read it. When it arrived I was stoked. I sure recommend it

１０年くらい前になるのか、パリコレでひときわ異彩を放っている（服よりメイクと帽子というか髪飾りで）デザイナーの記憶があった。それがこの二人で、なんと一人はレイシスト発言で失脚、もう一人は自殺というのに驚き、読んでみた。二人の生い立ちから2015年までの記録とコレクションの一部の作品（カラー）、各章の冒頭には白黒写真（プライベートが多いが、説明はない）という構成。ガリアーノはこれで十分、好奇心が満たされたが、マックイーンの方はもう一冊読んでみたいという気になるほど、人間臭いキャラクターにやられた！この業界についてと二人の奮闘？と敗北についての抜粋。P272 The luxury fashion game had changed.want to be the new business model wad not only working , it was ruling.The big guns of fashion -the houshold name brands-were growing exponentialy.略　Fashion has evolved in less than a decade into a global corporate industory.And the new generation of designers understood they had to accept it or find a new career.'If you 're going into the fashion business today and successful,you have to have money behind you,'略　'It's not just about talent any more.Ten years ago you had to have an idea,today it's not enough.If you want to be global and have a viable business, you have to marry yourself to a group. If at the end of this century your're not associated with money, then you don't have a future.P 379 He ( Galliano) and McQueen undertook parallel proffesional journeys, lauded degree collections at the same school, independent and finantially unstable early years that were brilliantly inventive and critically acclaimed, and corporate-backed superstardom that eventually drove them to emotional and creative burnout and self-destructioon.少々気になったのはマックイーンの自殺についてこれほど詳細に公にするのはどうなのか？

Dana Thomas' look at the lives of two of the most influential modern fashion designers, Alexander McQueen and John Galliano, is fascinating. Not only is it an in-depth look at their careers and early years, it also provides a detailed history of fashion during the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s. It details the triumphs and tragedies of these masters of their craft and proves, once again, that Dana Thomas is a brilliant fashion writer and historian. I have been a fan of Thomas' work for many years as a respected fashion journalist, and also highly recommend her book Deluxe: How Luxury Lost its Lustre.

Couldn’t put the book down....Written with such flow,as if a friend is telling a storyInformative as well...all in all a very good novel