Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
4/5
Audiobook6 hours
Tales from the Back Row: An Outsider's View from Inside the Fashion Industry
Written by Amy Odell
Narrated by C. S. E. Cooney
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
3.5/5
()
About this audiobook
In Tales from the Back Row, Cosmopolitan.com editor Amy Odell takes listeners behind the stage of New York's hottest fashion shows to meet the world's most influential models, designers, celebrities, editors, and photographers. But first, she has to push her way through the crowds outside, where we see the lengths people go to be noticed by the lurking paparazzi, and weave her way through the packed venue, from the very back row to the front.
As she describes the allure of Alexander Wang's ripped tights and Marchesa's Oscar-worthy dresses, Amy artfully layers in something else: ultimately this book is about how the fashion industry is an exaggerated mirror of human fallibility-reflecting our desperate desire to belong, to make a mark, to be included. For Amy is the first to admit that as much as she is embarrassed by the thrill she gets when she receives an invitation to an exclusive after-party, she can't help but RSVP "yes."
As she describes the allure of Alexander Wang's ripped tights and Marchesa's Oscar-worthy dresses, Amy artfully layers in something else: ultimately this book is about how the fashion industry is an exaggerated mirror of human fallibility-reflecting our desperate desire to belong, to make a mark, to be included. For Amy is the first to admit that as much as she is embarrassed by the thrill she gets when she receives an invitation to an exclusive after-party, she can't help but RSVP "yes."
Author
Amy Odell
Amy Odell is a fashion and culture journalist. Her work has appeared in New York magazine, The Economist’s 1843, Bloomberg Businessweek, and numerous other publications. She is the author of Anna and Tales from the Back Row. Find out more at AmyOdell.com.
Related to Tales from the Back Row
Related audiobooks
Mademoiselle: Coco Chanel and the Pulse of History Chronicles of a Fashion Buyer: The Mostly True Adventures of an International Fashion Buyer Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Dress Code: Unlocking Fashion from the New Look to Millennial Pink Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Clothes Make the Girl (Look Fat)?: Adventures and Agonies in Fashion Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Little Black Book of Style Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Pretty Iconic: A Personal Look at the Beauty Products that Changed the World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Glitter Plan: How We Started Juicy Couture for $200 and Turned It into a Global Brand Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5That's What Fashion Is: Lessons and Stories from My Nonstop, Mostly Glamorous Life in Style Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Diamond Doris: The True Story of the World's Most Notorious Jewel Thief Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Overdressed: The Shockingly High Cost of Cheap Fashion Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Cobbler: How I Disrupted an Industry, Fell From Grace, and Came Back Stronger Than Ever Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Dress Codes: How the Laws of Fashion Made History Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How to Date Your Wardrobe: And Other Ways to Revive, Revitalize, and Reinvigorate Your Style Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Price of Illusion: A Memoir Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Tim Gunn: the Natty Professor: A Master Class on Mentoring, Motivating and Making It Work! Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Grace & Style: The Art of Pretending You Have It Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Woman I Wanted to Be Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Vivienne Westwood Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Gods and Kings: The Rise and Fall of Alexander McQueen and John Galliano Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Riviera Set: Glitz, Glamour, and the Hidden World of High Society Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5All That Glitters: Anna Wintour, Tina Brown, and the Rivalry Inside America's Richest Media Empire Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5The Wig, The Bitch & The Meltdown Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Pat in the City: My Life of Fashion, Style, and Breaking All the Rules Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5White Girl Problems Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Widow's Guide to Sex and Dating: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Crazy Rich: Power, Scandal, and Tragedy Inside the Johnson & Johnson Dynasty Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Primates of Park Avenue: Adventures Inside the Secret Sisterhood of Manhattan Moms Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Hijacking the Runway: How Celebrities Are Stealing the Spotlight from Fashion Designers Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Season: A Social History of the Debutante Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Normal Gets You Nowhere Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Personal Memoirs For You
Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing: A Memoir Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I'm Glad My Mom Died Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Son of Hamas: A Gripping Account of Terror, Betrayal, Political Intrigue, and Unthinkable Choices Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I'll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman's Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Woman in Me Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Night: New translation by Marion Wiesel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5How to Stay Married Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Year of Magical Thinking Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Roxane Gay & Everand Originals: My Year of Psychedelics: Lessons on Better Living Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5A Stolen Life: A Memoir Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Counting the Cost Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5See You on the Way Down: Catch You on the Way Back Up! Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Good Girls Don't Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Pageboy: A Memoir Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Angela's Ashes Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Love, Pamela: A Memoir of Prose, Poetry, and Truth Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Choice: Escaping the Past and Embracing the Possible Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5While Time Remains: A North Korean Girl's Search for Freedom in America Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Dad at Peace Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Making It So: A Memoir Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Glass Castle: A Memoir Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Finding Me: A Memoir Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Becoming Free Indeed: My Story of Disentangling Faith from Fear Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5You Could Make This Place Beautiful: A Memoir Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5On Writing: A Memoir Of The Craft Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Roxane Gay & Everand Originals: Built for This: The Quiet Strength of Powerlifting Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Beyond Belief: My Secret Life Inside Scientology and My Harrowing Escape Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Enough Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Billion Years: My Escape From a Life in the Highest Ranks of Scientology Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5
Related podcast episodes
The Eternal Cool of Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy, According To Biographer Sunita Kumar Nair 0% found this document usefulS13 Ep 13: LA Special - Christine Quinn 0% found this document usefulCoco Chanel 0% found this document usefulHow to Read a Dress, an Interview with Lydia Edwards 0% found this document usefulIn 'They're Going to Love You,' a dancer's secret unravels lessons about forgiveness 0% found this document usefulFashion Revolution's Orsola de Castro - Upcycling Queen 0% found this document usefulLondon Fashion Renegade: Dr NOKI is the O.G. Upcycler - Just Don't Call Him That 0% found this document useful4. Why Shoes are Half the Battle When it Comes to Finding Your Style 0% found this document usefulEpisode 197: Responsible Travel with Desirée and Ginger 0% found this document usefulORSOLA DE CASTRO- Sustainability expert 0% found this document usefulFashion Education - Dilys Williams & the Centre for Sustainable Fashion, London 0% found this document useful
Related articles
A Very French Affair Harper's Bazaar AustraliaArticle
A Very French Affair
Mar 10, 2019
8 min readThe Marvellous Mr Blahnik Harper's Bazaar SingaporeArticle
The Marvellous Mr Blahnik
Dec 10, 2021
6 min readA Note From Us. GAY TIMESArticle
A Note From Us.
Feb 28, 2020
Whether it is high energy catwalks or backstage catfights, the sassy gay assistant shading your new look, or the feared ice queen Editor, it’s not surprising that fashion has gained a reputation for being the land of chaos, caffeine and superficialit
3 min readLetter From The Founder The RakeArticle
Letter From The Founder
Oct 12, 2018
11 min readA Work of Heart Da ManArticle
A Work of Heart
Mar 25, 2019
1 min readThe Fashion Show Must Go On: Empty Catwalks And Watching Live Streams From The Kitchen Table, This Is Fashion Week During A Pandemic The IndependentArticle
The Fashion Show Must Go On: Empty Catwalks And Watching Live Streams From The Kitchen Table, This Is Fashion Week During A Pandemic
Sep 24, 2020
6 min readFalling Flat: Are The Days Of High Heels Coming To An End? NPRArticle
Falling Flat: Are The Days Of High Heels Coming To An End?
Sep 8, 2019
3 min readTaking The Lead StylistArticle
Taking The Lead
Sep 13, 2022
6 min readStyle With Substance The RakeArticle
Style With Substance
Apr 5, 2019
6 min readThe World, Refashioned Vogue AustraliaArticle
The World, Refashioned
Dec 13, 2020
3 min readThe Dreamer L'OFFICIEL USAArticle
The Dreamer
Mar 8, 2021
4 min readMOST STYLISH WOMEN 2020 (and one man) Harper's Bazaar SingaporeArticle
MOST STYLISH WOMEN 2020 (and one man)
Nov 23, 2020
7 min readThe Ecstasy Of A Great Out Fit Harper's Bazaar SingaporeArticle
The Ecstasy Of A Great Out Fit
Apr 7, 2023
8 min readThe Case for Boring Office Clothes The AtlanticArticle
The Case for Boring Office Clothes
Jun 10, 2019
4 min readJOSEPH ALTUZARRA ANAÏS MAK He Said, She Said Tatler Hong KongArticle
JOSEPH ALTUZARRA ANAÏS MAK He Said, She Said
Nov 4, 2019
5 min readMost Stylish Women 2019 Harper's Bazaar SingaporeArticle
Most Stylish Women 2019
Nov 13, 2019
8 min readIt’s Not A Phase, Mum frankie MagazineArticle
It’s Not A Phase, Mum
Apr 1, 2024
9 min readThe Rake Personified The RakeArticle
The Rake Personified
Apr 5, 2019
14 min readI'm Making A Fashion Statement. OK! Marie Claire AustraliaArticle
I'm Making A Fashion Statement. OK!
Nov 18, 2021
7 min readThe Dos and Don’ts of Cultural Appropriation The AtlanticArticle
The Dos and Don’ts of Cultural Appropriation
Oct 20, 2015
6 min readA New York Tale Vogue AustraliaArticle
A New York Tale
Oct 24, 2021
7 min readWho Decides What’s Tacky Anyway? Literary HubArticle
Who Decides What’s Tacky Anyway?
Aug 2, 2018
7 min readPure Brilliance Vogue AustraliaArticle
Pure Brilliance
Nov 15, 2020
5 min readWearing History Simply SewingArticle
Wearing History
Oct 29, 2020
5 min readBig Bang Theory Harper's Bazaar SingaporeArticle
Big Bang Theory
Aug 9, 2023
It seemed like an impossible task. The biggest luxury fashion brand in the world, whose menswear division for the past few years has been a cultural hotrod when it was spearheaded by Virgil Abloh, the visionary disruptor, needed someone new in the dr
4 min readWonderland Capri Vintage And Luxury On The Smartest Island In The World Superyacht InternationalArticle
Wonderland Capri Vintage And Luxury On The Smartest Island In The World
Aug 20, 2018
5 min readIn Style REVOLUTION DIGITALArticle
In Style
Sep 15, 2017
3 min readFashion Richard Quinn GAY TIMESArticle
Fashion Richard Quinn
Jan 31, 2020
8 min readThe SAVANT Vogue SingaporeArticle
The SAVANT
Jul 20, 2022
3 min readMillennials Have Lost Their Grip on Fashion The AtlanticArticle
Millennials Have Lost Their Grip on Fashion
Sep 21, 2023
4 min read
Reviews for Tales from the Back Row
Rating: 3.6666666666666665 out of 5 stars
3.5/5
6 ratings0 reviews