Chrissie
2,811 reviews1,443 followers
Free for Audible-UK-and-US-members. Thanks for the recommendation, Eileen. For me this was a winner. I have thoroughly enjoyed this book. I have no complaints. A Louis Vutton bag is one everyone recognizes—both for its style and its quality! Here is the story behind the man who created both the bag and the company. Along the way we get an absolutely fascinating and well written retelling of what was going on in France during Louis Vutton’s lifetime. He was born in Anchay, Jura, France, on August 4, 1821. He died in 1892 at the age of seventy. He and his wife, also from Jura, came to be very close to the popular monarch Napolean III and his wife, Eugénie de Montijo. Vutton, year after year was the sole person allowed to pack the Empress’ possessions on all of her trips, not just in France but worldwide. We observe, up close, the friendship that grew between the two. We learn how the company began and how it developed over the decades. Louis started from nothing. The company became renown for quality and its ability to safely transport all and every conceivable object—hats, clothing, jewelry, art, books, chandeliers…… The best and the safest packaging was designed for each given product. This is NOT boring! This is because there is so much ingenuity and thought put into each job undertaken. By observing what Louis did, we learn about the man and what made him tick. He had a heart. He prioritized family. The history of France during the era of the Bonapartes is told through French people’s eyes. Their love and pride in their country comes through loud and clear. Having lived in France, this mirrors what I saw and experienced still a century later. History shapes the character of a nation and its people. I like that we are given French history through the eyes of the French. To understand France and the French people events must be seen from a French perspective and point of view. The book gives us this, and it does it well! Commissioned by Emperor Napoleon III, we observe Georges-Eugène Haussmann's renovation and remodeling of Paris between 1853 and 1870. We observe what it was like to live through the transition between the Second and Third French Republics, the bloody events of the Paris Commune and the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71. History is told through the lives of people we have gotten to know. This makes it meaningful. Just the right amount of historical facts are included. I can only speak for myself, but personally, I was never bored. Jennifer Connolly reads the English version of the audiobook very well. Her French is French, not some English version twisting French pronunciation. The narration I have given four stars, just as I have the book’s written content! I highly recommend this. That it is free for Audible Plus members is really a treat. Don’t miss this. Once again , thank you Eileen for telling me of this book. Now I’m passing the message on!
There is an English version! The translation from the French is by Peter McCavana.
- 2023-read audible-plus-uk france
Kayla
196 reviews2 followers
This was a pretty straightforward biography, but I enjoyed it, and I learned a lot about Louis' life, and the political, cultural, and social climate in France and even further afield during that time. I've been captivated by the beauty and craftsmanship of LV bags for a long time, so this was fascinating to me. I did listen to the book, and it seems to be a pretty direct translation from the French version, so some of the cadence and plot structure felt a little strange, but it didn't matter too much.
Bongrand writes from the perspective of an American ambassador telling Louis that his trunks would be "very much appreciated by American customers who like beautiful ideas intelligently put into practice," and I was like, yep, that's it!
Gautier Sq
11 reviews
Great overview of the trajectory of the founder. The story walks you through the 2nd empire, Napoleon III, the re-organization of Paris into a modern city, the transition into modern times, industrial progress, the development of travel and leisure… And of course the mindset and creativity on an entrepreneur!
A enjoyable travel in history.
Estelle J
259 reviews2 followers
Offert par Audible Autobiographie de Louis Vuitton romancé comme un conte / fiction.
Récit intéressant mais j'ai pas du tout aimé la voix de l'audiobook : trop monotone et sur un ton qui s'adresse aux enfants. J'ai du écouté à la vitesse x2.5
- audible audiobook french-author
Camomille✨
44 reviews9 followers
3,75 ⭐
Andrea
93 reviews3 followers
Je ne m'intéresse pas à la mode, et trouve souvent les biographies de personnages historiques barbantes. Quand audible àa proposé ce livre gratuitement, j'ai donc hésité, et je l'ai mis de côté au lieu de l'écouter tout de suite. Finalement je l'ai démarré, et j'ai découvert une perle. Le langage est simple mais élégant, l'histoire est charmante et bien encadrée par l'Histoire de la France, Isabelle Huppert lit très bien. C'était une excellente surprise, et je suis seulement triste de l'avoir terminé trop vite !
- audiobooks biografi non-fiction
Estelle
16 reviews
Écouté grâce à Audible. C'est un livre très intéressant que je n'aurais sûrement pas lu sans Audible.
Il permet d'apprendre beaucoup d'informations sur la vie de Louis Vuitton.
Je ne connaissais pour ma part rien sur sa vie et j'ai vraiment apprécié ma lecture.
Margot
325 reviews4 followers
Une histoire passionnante, bien racontée (évidemment puisque c'était par Isabelle Hupert!) Je ne pouvais arrêter mon écoute et j'aurais voulu que ça dure plus longtemps.
J'avais vu à l'émission "Secrets d'Histoire" l'histoire de l'empereur Napoléon III et de son épouse l'impératrice Eugénie. Mais j'ai été très étonnée de rencontrer la future impératrice dans la boutique où travaillait le jeune Louis Vuitton.
Une très belle histoire de valeurs, de travail incessant et de courage dans l'adversité.
Je ne verrai plus la marque Vuitton du même oeil...
- audio-books biographical-fiction history
Artem Vardanian
33 reviews
I was looking forward to listen to this book as it's narrated by Jennifer Connely. She's fluent in French and I expected this to be an advantage. Now about the book. It was claimed that Caroline Bongrand researched Louis Vuitton's archive. I didn't feel that. I felt like a gold digger in the Gold Rush. Sifting through hundreds of kilos of waste rock for bits of gold. The book feels like dramatically overstretched Vogue article. Dialogues are artificial and empty, tons of pointless fillers, a lot of unrelated events and strange chapter structure, and some facts. The length of this mocumentary can be easily reduced by 60%.
Oh man, I like Jennifer Connely but the way she reads an English text with insertion of French words sounds not as good as I expected. I've worked with bi-lingual Canadians and the way they switched language mid-sentence or pronounce address in Montréal fascinated me. There is nothing like that with Connely, like a piece of cat hair caught in her throat every time she's saying street name in Paris.
I was looking for every piece of information about Louis Vuitton so I forced myself to finish the book. Louis Vuitton is for sure a self-made man with a character and strong will. He deserves a better book. 1 and 1/2 star rounded to 2
Eileen
975 reviews
4.5 stars English version available via Audible Publisher's Summary: "Louis Vuitton was just thirteen years old, when he left the family mill to escape his stepmother. In Paris, he found work with Maréchal, the most prestigious box-maker and packer in Faubourg Saint-Honoré. Caroline Bongrand's vivid account relates the rise of this daring young man, a virtuoso, visionary craftsman in a capital city transformed by Haussmann. When Eugénie de Montijo became Empress of France, she continued to enlist the services of her favorite packer, with whom she developed a sincere, lasting friendship. After setting up his own business in 1854, benefiting from the splendor of France's Second Empire, Louis Vuitton continually innovated to design trunks specially for the most extravagant clothes and the most exotic journeys, turning his own life into an epic tale."
Aymeric
79 reviews1 follower
You start the book and you can’t put it down - how I love this feeling! My favorite passage: “to be French, Louis, is to be the bearer of this extraordinary refinement, this extreme sophistication, this sense of opulence.”
This book is a novel featuring the life of Louis Vuitton (most likely the most famous person you know nothing about!) and his journey to build his own business and brand. You will also learn about France, the history of France from king Louis-Philippe to Napoleon III and Paris, being built by Haussmann and unveiling Paris in its new shape and form to the world.
The book is very well written. It reminds me of Zola’s style.
Maeva
446 reviews14 followers
Un peu déroutant. En soit, c'était intéressant et je ne connaissais rien de la vie de Louis Vuitton donc j'ai forcément appris des choses et j'ai maintenant très envie d'en savoir plus sur Eugénie ! Mais beaucoup de passages qui servent à faire de cette biographie un roman semblent spéculatifs et je me demande du coup à quel point cette lecture est romancée.
Est-ce que c'est un histoire pour enfant ? Dans ce cas là, c'est un peu lent pour garder leur attention. Est-ce que c'est pour les adultes ? Dans ce cas, je ne suis pas sûre que le livre s'y prenne très bien.
Marie-lynn Bouchard
49 reviews1 follower
A ma grande surprise j’ai adorer c’est une biographie oui mais romancer mais de façon si jolie les tout début du très jeune Louis Vuitton a son apogée,es rencontres les idées pour les malles oui que des malles au départ le reste viendrait vers la fin. L’amour du travail et de sa famille les joies et les peines ça m’a fait voir le côté humains de Louis Vuitton celui que je ne connaissais pas je l’ai fini presque à regret c’était si bon que je l’aurais voulue plus lo g…
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Madelyn
3 reviews
I thought this book would read like a nonfiction book and take me awhile to get through, but it read like a story and, being an LV fan, I found it it really fun to understand the history behind the brand. The translation to English was unnoticeable and I got through 3/4 of it in a weekend. Highly recommend if you’re interested in Louis Vuitton or French history in general as the story of Napoleon III is sprinkled in as well.
Julia
140 reviews
Such a fabulous book - beautifully written - it’s a little jewel with so many facets and such depth. It has the feeling of a fairy tale, a Dickens story, and an intimate look into a creative man’s life and how he was affected by the period of history he lived in. I just loved it! Highly recommend it!
Giulia Larigaldie
132 reviews1 follower
Très agréable à lire. Extrêmement bien documenté. Des personnages attachants. Avec en fond, l'Histoire.
Voilà le genre de livres que j'aime lire car on apprend énormément sans pour autant avoir la sensation que l'auteur fait étalage de ses connaissances qui ont été suffisamment "digérées" pour être distillées de façon intelligente et fluide, en restant au service du récit.
Eden Boy
245 reviews
Cette biographie m’a permis de découvrir la vie du créateur de l’entreprise Louis Vuitton. J’ai beaucoup aimé la voix posée d’Isabelle Huppert dans la version livre audio.
Je ne me doutais pas que c’était une si ancienne maison (années 1800) qui bien avant de créer des sacs confectionnait des malles de voyage.
- audiobook autobiography-biography
Nawele K
39 reviews1 follower
Quelle vie!
Cette volonté d’avancer, cette soif de connaissances et de perfection!
J’ai aimé découvrir une période historique française que je ne connais pas bien.
Écouté en audiobook: la voix ne m’as pas emballé.. parfois monotone et parfois sur-joué. Mais je me suis quand même laissé emporter par l’histoire.
15/20
- audiobook
Isabelle
875 reviews12 followers
Ce livre est une surprise et un régale. Si l'histoire de Louis Vuitton est inattendue, la façon d'écrire appelle aussi à l'imaginaire, presque au conte. Ce livre est donc un choix à s'autoriser pour le plaisir d'une lecture n'éludant pas pour autant l'aspect historique, et c'est très bien aisni.
Julie Bouchonville
Author9 books20 followers
Vraiment intéressant et bien écrit, j'ai eu du mal à le reposer. La version audio n'est pas génial en revanche : la narratrice a une maniere de raconter très etrange, lente et presque infantilisante.
Erik
82 reviews
On ne peux que admirer le parcours de cette homme. Grace a son travail et talent il a réussi a bâtir une Société avec des produits de qualités, élaborés selon les besoin d'une société en pleine mutation. Je suis devenu fan de Louis Vuitton.
Minora
40 reviews4 followers
Audiobook très agréable à écouter et une histoire qui m’a vraiment surprise!
Quel parcours assez incroyable que celui de Louis Vuitton, le fait que la biographie soit romancée aide vraiment à se plonger dans son histoire.
Julien COLLOT
15 reviews
Super intéressant !
On en apprend sur la vie de Louis et sur l'époque, c'est fascinant !
Par contre, j'ai eu la version audible et la voix est horrible, très monotone, c'est franchement dommage car c'est plutôt bien écrit. Prenez la version papier !
Aurore
17 reviews
Quel livre! L’histoire est tout simplement superbe, avec une immersion totale dans le Paris du XIXème et une biographie bien romancée, qui nous fait vivre tout une autre époque sur cette grande marque française.
- histoire-de-la-mode
Nanoussa
56 reviews1 follower
J’ai découvert par hasard via audible l’autobiographie de Louis Vuitton. J’ai vraiment apprécier découvrir son histoire.
Iman Eyitayo
Author39 books81 followers
Très jolie lecture, très jolie histoire
- adulte historical non-fiction
Meredith
353 reviews44 followers
4.5 GoodReads Stars!
Katia
3 reviews1 follower
What an incredible journey. How a penniless young boy succeeds in building an empire through passion, hard work and selfconfidence.
Mauricio Herrerabarría
39 reviews3 followers
It's an epic tale of overcoming—and a dynamic historical text—but I do think its simple format and unfussed tone take lustre and dimensionality from an otherwise extraordinary character.
Julls
379 reviews4 followers
3.5