An absoutly facinating insight. Very witty and gossipy - how the other half lives! Very readable, it flows along nicely. It's not my usual genre but I'm so glad I had the opportunity to read it.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the advance review copy.

I really enjoyed this book, what an insight! It was fascinating, a real step into that world. I never realised what it takes to put a magazine out and to a high standard. What she achieved was amazing but to also share tibits from her personal life made it all seem so much more real. Which was good as some of the work stories seemed like no that can’t be true. ;) I will happily recommend this book to my friends as it was a pleasant change from my usual fiction.

Honest review in exchange for a copy of this book, thank you NetGalley

Well written, frenetic and bubbling with energy. What a life!

Thank you netgalley and the publishers for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

Following the life of the editor of vanity fair through her lifestyle. If you love gossip mags then this is for you.

Absolutely loved this. What’s not to love if you like a look into the ‘other half’’ ‘s lives.
Deliciously gossipy and I bet not even close to the truth....recommend everyone reads this!

Posh and boring. Not for me I kept reading and hoping it would get better but it didn't.A lot of name dropping of people I had not heard of and pages of slow tales of getting a new magazine editor job.
There was very little humour and still it dragged on with repetitive stories of dinners and meetings. Not sure who would enjoy this but not the old ladies of my book group!

I quite enjoyed reading this book but for me it was too slow getting going and I almost gave up. I found myself missing chunks of the story as I did not really know most of the people. Reads like a gossip column but nothing wrong with that.

Really, really enjoyed this. The gossip, the setting up of a magazine, the lifestyle, it all made a riveting read, thank you net galley for letting me read it. Definitely a glimpse into a very different lifestyle to mine, but very readable and exciting, flowed along nicely.

Tina's life as editor in chief of Vanity Fair was definitely interesting.and at times outrageous. It was surreal to read about the people she encountered from the rich and famous, politicians and royalty. It was a good insight into the journalistic world as well as Tina''s own life.

The real life diary entries of Tina Brown, who became Editor-in-Chief of Vanity Fair whilst still in her 20's.
A light and amusing read about the Glitterati - many of whom I must confess to never having heard of. Not my usual type but an amusing time filler.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the advance review copy.

Conde Nast and New York in the 80s were surely going to be an interesting read, especially from the perspective of someone like Tina Brown, and that's basically what this book is. If you like that idea, you'll probably like this book, it's that simple.

That's also far too simple. This is obviously touted as diaries, and the rather long prelude of life at Tatler in London included a big point about how diaries have a rawness that an autobiography lacks, and yet I frequently found myself wondering how polished and curated these diary entries were once they finally started. Sure, I wasn't expecting a completely untouched account of events in the style of Samuel Pepys, but at times the writing seemed incredibly deliberate. Partly this is explained in the wrapping up, where Brown points out that she had added descriptions of various people to help those of us who didn't live New York in the 80s understand who some of those involved were, but it came a bit late and left me with a slight unease as I read. I don't know why, had it been pitched simply as an autobiography with dates I would've been fine, but the diary tag kept niggling away at me. If a lot of this polish was really included when originally written it somewhat bursts the bubble that this is any different to an autobiography because the writing is just too deliberate to be a behind the curtain view of that world.

That small irritation did slow my reading somewhat, however, when I could put it to one side and just sink into the moment I found the entries often very interesting. Naturally, some of the events and people involved were more interesting than others. None felt expendable and boring, but some did catch my attention more than others.

The surprising pleasure of this book proved to be Brown's life away from work. She is a figure I have been aware of, and her reputation, whilst not always entirely flattering, has been pretty impressive. The glimpses of family life showed a completely different person. When she first started talking about motherhood I expected to find those entries tiresome and a distraction from the tales of powerplays and tantrums, but they quickly felt like they belonged. Yes, fighting with the nanny may not be a typical snippet of motherhood, but it fits the lifestyle of a high chic New York lifestyle with a place in the Hamptons. There's something reassuring in knowing that even when you have a publishing empire helping you relocate to a new city you can still end up with a weird landlord and want to get out of the apartment quickly.

Back at work, you do get amusing tales of celebrity stresses, of managing staff and bosses, of art and creativity, even a good view of the more practical side of publishing with the politics and logistics involved. There's a gossipy feel to some of the anecdotes, but it never feels snide. Sure, some of the stories made me wonder how well they went down with those involved, but I also get the impression there would be surprisingly few grudges, and not just because 30 years on some of those involved are too old to care. Throughout the book Brown makes reference to the way people would be upset at articles but would warm up afterwards, or if warned beforehand, and that tone seems to be carried over here.

If you want to see the Tina Brown behind the image, I feel this delivers something. If you want a New York soap opera, this also delivers. If you want both you're set with this book. A nice gentle read that's well suited to dipping in and out of.

I enjoyed this book despite not knowing most of the people in it. It is a great look back at the history of the time around the late 80's early 90's. How Tina Brown had the energy to attend all the dinners and awards that she did as well as having a full time job with a young baby was amazing feat of stamina It was great to see some celebrities from her perspective and the engagements that she had with Donald Trump may interesting reading looking back.
The Machiavellian stories of SI Newhouse show what power these publishing barons wielded and their empires were run to their whims similar to the Caesars in the Roman Empire. It was great to see how like every working mother, Tina, was distracted by her family and how to do the best by them.
I found it a really good story about a woman at the top of her game with all the insecurities that we have.

I have to admit i found the few quarter of this book very hard to get into, however once Ms Brown was finally in her job I couldn't put the book down. I was unaware of some of the names she spoke of, but her vivid, and often hilarious descriptions were more than enough to paint a picture in my head, She came across as very likeable with her drive and energy evident. I will be (and have done) recommending this book.

I love biographies, especially of people working in media and publishing, and I love Vanity Fair to which I subscribed for two years and I still occasionally buy, so I was really eager to read the autobiography (or better, journal) of one of the best editors Vanity Fair ever had.

Tina Brown was the young editor of Tatler magazine, but in 1983, Tina, then in her late twenties, left London to move to New York and become the editor of the just reborn Vanity Fair. Surrounded by a staff of talented editors, photographers, designers, and artist, Tina Brown tries to bring Vanity Fair back to its glory of the 1920s.

The journals are detailed. She recounts her working day, the problems she had at work, the power struggle to make sure she can publish a successful magazine. She talks about the successes, her pride when the magazine finally comes out. She meets many famous people, actors, musicians, photographers, politicians, presidents, and royals, and – the ones I was most interested in – many writers, from Nora Ephron to Martin Amis, from Tom Wolfe to Norman Mailer.

Although the Vanity Fair Diaries focuses mostly on her career and her job as editor, the reader gets also a glimpse to her personal life: her marriage to former Times editor Harry Evans, the premature birth of their son, the birth of her daughter, her struggle as a mother and a successful working woman, adapting to life in the United States, her relationship with her parents, the loss of friends, and more.

An insightful and well-written book, I found myself captivated by Tina’s recollections: I laughed, I felt sad, but mostly I couldn’t put it down.

Brilliant read. Hugely insightful in Tina's time at Vanity Fair. Loved this.

Although I enjoyed this book to some extent,it was full of references to people who were well known in the world of magazines in the US during the 1980 s,and they meant little to me,although I am old enough to remember the 80s,
After a while it got a bit tedious,and although there were some fascinating encounters with the Reagans and Donald Trump,there were also many,many references to people most if us in the U.K. would never have heard of.

A mesmerising read! Twenty-something Tina Brown‘s actual diaries chronicling her whirlwind life in New York as editor in chief of Vanity Fair magazine. The wheelings and dealings of hundreds of the rich and famous people of the Eighties and early Nineties, described in poignant thumbnail sketches, complemented by cleverly explained background facts about the politics and economy give a fascinating insight into the contemporary history of that era, painting a genre picture of Eighties New York society. I received an ARC through Netgalley in return for my honest unbiased review.

Fascinating insights into a dizzying decade, thrown into sharp relief by what we know now about the seedy background of so much of the celebrity world, and the challenges facing even the most successful women.

Whilst I write this review I find myself seated opposite Gary Terbenucle, with Andy Whatsit and Phil Bleach from ACB on either side of me. Yes you may not know those people, but if you weren’t an adult in the 80’s/90’s, or in media, there are going to be a plethora of names in this book you won’t know either.

A lot of the book read like an A-list catalogue, and although I didn’t know 90% of the names I did have a lot of fun googling some of them. If I were to be honest though, I probably didn’t care too much about most of them, which is probably my generational deficit, or the fact that a lot was media specific.

This was an insight into a world I didn’t know existed, or at least the existence of which I chose to ignore in order for my peon life to still have significance. Wow, the sheer opulence of the elite was just crazy to read about. It seems you are either born into the elite world, marry into it, or know the right people (oh, or there is a small percentage of people that worked for it). It’s all about who to drink with, who to dinner with, and who to woo.

Regardless, Tina Brown’s journey was still enjoyable to follow, and exceptionally insightful. It was great feeling the passion she exhibited in what now feels to be a bygone era where paper media ruled the world. It was amazing to see the effort required to roll out a magazine and feel an appreciation for the art of story harnessing. Unfortunately most news today is regurgitated tabloid garbage with the same photos shared a thousand times. I envy the days where news was newsworthy and enlightenment was cherished. Here’s to hoping it is indeed the dawn of a new Golden Age as TB hopes/predicts.

Tina’s real and touching relationship with the AIDS pandemic was also edifying. Although we were aware of the outbreak and effect in the USA whilst growing up, it was restricted to the stars, and overshadowed by the later ravishing of the uneducated and impoverished African population that was a lot closer to home.

Additionally seeing her struggle with her family life and the intricate balancing act that all parents have to endure (to different degrees of course) made her overall story more tangible. The neurosis she felt and the second guessing of decisions allowed the average reader an ability to at least associate with TB on one level.

Although I found myself laughing aloud to some anecdotes (TB definitely has a sense of humour) I felt there could have been more humour interspersed within the book. Take that with a pinch of salt though, I am well aware that there were actually more jokes, but there were a few that were simply not relevant to me, or went over my head.

All in all this was a good read. Not something I would normally choose to read and quite a bit superfluous at times, from my perspective at least, but definitely a concise tale of one person’s flirtation with history.