The legendary rivalry between Coco Chanel and Elsa Schiaparelli is well known in
fashion history. What drew you to write about this notorious feud in The Last Collection?
It seemed, currently, to be a very good time to be writing about strong, powerful women
who do not back down from competition or threats. I once visited a country that did not have
freedom of press and information, and I needed a complicated visa to get there. The clerk at
the embassy asked me what I did for a living (I was a journalist at the time) and I told him I was
a writer. He jumped up from his desk, truly alarmed! He asked me what I wrote about, and I
said family studies, human development, nutrition, consumer finance. He sat back down and
said , gOh. Womenfs stuff. Doesnft matter.h I got the visa, but I also got a strong lesson about
what many people think of womenfs issues. This book says that ewomenfs stufff really does
matter.
Europe in the late 30s, as we know, is on the cusp of a tumultuous time that leads to
WWII. What did this political landscape add to your story? How did the war affect fashion and
art during this time?
During the early research for this novel, reading the biographies and autobiographies
and histories, I developed a strong sense of how closely connected fashion, style and politics
are. Artists wore day laborersf clothing to show their support of the working man; women wore
clothing that often reflected their own political choices. During the war, there were stiff
clothing and fabric rations in France, as well as the food and gas rationing, and women often
defied the military-imposed laws and wore dresses made of more fabric than was allowed,
hats that were so silly they were like a joke, a thumbing-the-nose at the German military in the
streets. After a while, I couldnft separate fashion and politics, and didnft want to.
Your main character, Lily Sutter, has recently been widowed and goes to France to
visit her brother for a change of pace. How did her perspective on fashion, art, and life change
as she interacts with Chanel and Schiaparelli?
Lily, at the beginning of the novel, has stopped caring about her appearance because
she is devastated by her husbandfs death. She feels clothing is superficial, unimportant. But
as her brother and his girl, Ania, help Lily begin to enjoy life again, she becomes interested in
clothing as artistic expression, and as a source of pleasure. Life is made of small moments,
small things, but those small things – what we eat for breakfast, what we wear, how we spend
our leisure time – those things become part of the essence of who we are and what we want
from life.
Chanel and Schiaparelli had very different approaches to their clothing design;
Chanel is classic lines and ready-to-wear, while Schiap was bold and Avant-garde. What life
lessons or advice did you discover while researching these two scions of couture?
I most took to heart a piece of advice from Elsa Schiaparelli, as she wrote in her
autobiography, Shocking Life: gNinety percent {of women} are afraid of being conspicuous and
of what people will say. So they buy a grey suit. They should dare to be different.h Thatfs me,
Ifm afraid. I have an almost pathological fear of ridicule. I am trying to be more colorful! And
Coco pointed out that if your clothes donft fit perfectly in the shoulders, they wonft hang well
or look good. Ifve always fussed about shoulders. I was a swimmer as a kid with good, strong
shoulders and I always wanted my clothes to show off my shoulders. I learned how to fit
armholes and tailor them when I was a teen. Coco and I agree on this. And another tip from
Coco: sew little weights into the hems of your jackets – theyfll hang better. Aside from
tailoring tips, Coco also became a lesson in the power of solitude.
Both this book and one of your previous releases, The Beautiful American, are set
in Paris. What do you love about Paris as a setting in books?
I love the city. Absolutely love it. At one point in my life, I knew Paris better than I knew
New York, which is close to where I livecat least much closer than Paris. My grandmotherfs
family was originally from France and my mother loved and boasted about the connection.
Loving Paris is part of me, of my family. It is a city that can never be completely known, it has
so much history, so many niches and secrets and mysteries.
Summer is finally here! Do you have any fun plans - fun vacations, relaxing
staycations, etc.? And most importantly, what are you reading this summer?
I live in the country, in an old farmhouse with a huge garden, lakes nearby, wineries,
hiking trails, waterfalls. I live where many people come to vacation, so in the summer I actually
prefer to stay right where I am, surrounded by beauty and comfort. I prefer to travel in the
autumn, when itfs cooler and crowds thin out a bit. What am I reading? Anything that looks
interesting. Ifm working on another novel at the moment, so Ifll be reading a lot of nonfiction,
feeding my information hunger and then rereading some of my favorite novels, stories that I go
back to over and over again, for inspiration.
What can readers expect from you next?
Another trip to France! Ifve stepped back in time a bit, and headed south, to the Riviera
in the 1920fs and 30fs, to spend time with the artists who summered there. More than that, I
will not say at the moment!
Rapid Fire Random Questions
Dragons or unicorns: Dragons. Fire-breathers. Guardians.
Five people youfd invite to your book club (dead, alive, fictional, etc.!):
Voltaire, Oscar Wilde, Roman Gary, Sleeping Beauty (shefd certainly need a catch up)
and the Brothers Grimm. Can I count them as one person?
Some of your auto-buy authors: Jeanette Winterson, Robert
MacFarlane, John Mortimer. I read in all genres, all categories.
Favorite flower: Always depends on what is blooming in my garden. At
the moment, itfs yellow Siberian iris. I just stand at stare at them, in awe. So beautiful!
Earliest celebrity crush: Believe it or not, I didnft develop a celebrity
crush until a few years ago, when Benedict Cumberbatch filmed the Sherlock series. Now, I
would stand in line all night and scream like a teenager for him.
Random interesting fact you like to tell people: I study belly dancing.
I started doing it for stress relief, and discovered what a lovely, empowering dance form it
actually is. My teacher, June Seaney, is fabulous. She is the first belly dancer to teach the art
in the Ivy League, at Cornell University.
Hobbies you have (aside from reading and writing): Well, youfve
already heard about the gardening and the belly dancing. Ifll throw in cooking, and I used to
quilt, until my cat jumped on the quilting frame, bounced up and down three times, and broke
the frame. I decided Ifd rather have cats than quilts.
Dream vacation: Paris. Paris. And Paris again. Plus a month or two in
western Ireland, and a season in Iceland. I need beautiful scenery, natural or manmade, and a
great bistro/bar in the evening.
Sweet or salty snacks: Salty. Potato chips and dip. I could live on
them. But I donft. My conscience wonft allow it.
You have a totally free afternoon - no deadlines, no obligations, no Twitter
notifications! What do you do?: Go for a sauna and a massage, or
an afternoon matinee at the cinema. I prefer to see movies alone, so that I donft have to worry
if my companion is also enjoying it or fuming that I dragged him along!
Thank you, thank you! These were great questions. I hope you like The Last
Collection!
A Novel of Elsa Schiaparelli and Coco ChanelAn American woman becomes entangled in the intense
rivalry between iconic fashion designers Coco Chanel and
Elsa Schiaparelli in this captivating novel from the
acclaimed author of The Beautiful American.
Paris, 1938. Coco Chanel and Elsa Schiaparelli are
fighting for recognition as the most successful and
influential fashion designer in France, and their rivalry is
already legendary. They oppose each other at every turn, in
both their politics and their designs: Chanelfs are classic,
elegant, and practical; Schiaparellifs bold, experimental,
and surreal.
When Lily Sutter, a recently widowed young American teacher,
visits her brother, Charlie, in Paris, he insists on buying
her a couture dress—a Chanel. Lily, however, prefers a
Schiaparelli. Charliefs beautiful and socially prominent
girlfriend soon begins wearing Schiaparellifs designs as
well, and much of Paris follows in her footsteps.
Schiaparelli offers budding artist Lily a job at her store,
and Lily finds herself increasingly involved with
Schiaparelli and Chanelfs personal war. Their fierce
competition reaches new and dangerous heights as the Nazis
and the looming threat of World War II bear down on Paris.
Historical | Women's Fiction
Historical [Berkley, On Sale: June 25, 2019, Hardcover / e-
Book, ISBN: 9781101990544 / eISBN: 9781101990551]
Jeanne Mackin is the author of several historical novels. Her most recent is The Beautiful
American. She has worked as a journalist for several publications, and as a university research
and science writer. She lives in the Finger Lakes region of New York State, with her husband,
artist Steve Poleskie. Jeanne was the recipient of a creative writing fellowship from the
American Antiquarian Society and her journalism has won awards from the Council for the
Advancement and Support of Education.
***
Fresh Fiction Editorial Manager Danielle Dresser is an avid reader,
lackluster-yet-mighty crafter, and accomplished TV binge-watcher. Once upon a time, she
was a publisher publicist and continues to cultivate her love of books and reading by chatting
with the best authors in the business. She lives in Chicagoland with her very own romance
hero husband, darling daughter, and two tempestuous cats. Follow her on Twitter
and Instagram, @dj_dresser.
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