This was a really interesting memoir by Edward Enninful. I am not a massive fashion fan so I had not heard of him before but was intrigued by his story and wanted to pick this up. I’m really glad I did. This book gives a fascinating insight into the world of fashion throughout the 90s and 2000s and I loved getting glimpses of behind the scenes and the influential people involved. This book also speaks of racism and Edwards influential role championing for more diversity and equality in fashion. I really appreciate reading books that educate me and although aware of the obvious inequalities present in fashion I found it interesting and informative to read about Edward’s experiences and the progress he has contributed to and no doubt will continue to.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for this advanced copy in return for an honest review.

This is a fascinating memoir which charts Edward (Asiamah) Enninful’s journey from his birth in Ghana to becoming Editor-in-Chief of British Vogue. This is a powerful story of using key positions to break down barriers and promote diversity and inclusivity. The cover perfectly matches the contents - this is one impressive man. I find the autobiography inspirational, what he achieves at an incredibly young age for example, becoming fashion director at i-D at 18! Yes, 18! His work ethic is truly phenomenal which inevitably leads him not only to becoming a rising star in the world of fashion but grants him the ability to make important statements. An example of this is his determination to represent black people in his fashion shoots and in magazines which you would think in this day and age would be representative of all but isn’t necessarily so. He encounters resistance but is proved right. He encounters racism on his way up, some of which takes my breath away in shock and makes me feel sad. However, he is an example along with figures such as Naomi Campbell that everyone can be at ‘the centre of the universe’ and do it on your own terms and in his case, by the efforts of yourself. I really enjoy too, the insights into the fashion world from the late ‘80’s, the things that influence him and how he finds his style.

Overall, this has been a interesting and insightful read. He writes with warmth, sensitivity and honesty and comes across as an immensely likeable man.

With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.

This isn't gossipy, it isn't full of celebrity insider stories, it's not particularly sophisticated in writing style - but what makes this so worth reading is Enninful's version of the 'immigrant story' and the fact that his vision is always that of a Black gay man at the cliff-face of the fashion and magazine industries, both notoriously white until very lately with no more than lip service paid to the prominent exceptions: Naomi Campbell, Iman, Alek Wek.

There's a lovely down to earth quality about Enninful's story, with a real warmth as he recalls his Ghanian middle-class family forced to become refugees in London after a political regime change in Ghana saw his father's cousin and his wife gunned down by opponents and Enninful's own military father named a target. His love of street fashion and music, his effortless intelligence, his mother's tailoring business all feed into his falling into modelling, then jobs styling for fashion shoots before he eventually becomes Editor-in-chief at Vogue.

Enninful pulls no punches in terms of his politics: Thatcher and, more recently, Brexit, Trump, the Tory lurch to the right, BLM, all get covered as much through his trepidation as a Black gay man who's had his fair share of racial and sexual profiling as anything. And it's hopeful remembering his politicisation of Vogue such as the 'I am an immigrant' campaign they ran in defiance of Trump and resurgent right-wing nationalism. It's clear that Enninful sees his role as a responsibility as well as an opportunity, something that has driven traditional Vogue in a whole new radical direction.

Nevertheless, this is no easy sunny story. One of the well-timed closing anecdotes is of Enninful entering Vogue House and being accosted by a white security guard who bellows: 'LOADING BAY... DELIVERIES GO THROUGH THE LOADING BAY.' He may be Editor-in-chief but there's still work to be done.