I'll Drink to That: A Life in Style, with a Twist

I adored this book. I appreciate good fashion style, but I hate to shop for clothes and rarely do, but since I love a good memoir, I gave this a go. I liked the author's voice from the start. I also love all references to Chicago since I lived there for 60 years and went to school in Hyde Park. I remember Stanley Korshak's store and ate at The Drake often. And learning her mother ran The Oak Street Book Shop -- oh my! It was the first stop on my walk from home to the IC to go to school. So if you are from Chicago, you will dig that aspect. I also know Miami and New York, where the author spent significant time, so that was fun, too..The author was painstakingly honest, which always endears me to the writer. Her early life was one both of privilege and neglect. She was truly the stereotype of the pre-feminist era housewife for many years--not working, dependent on her husband for her weekly allowance, living in a small world of shopping, making herself pretty, and attending social events. I would have been popping pills like crazy. My mother was close in age to the author. When she was accepted to the University of Chicago, she was offered a great job (during WWII) which ultimately gave her a career. I feel lucky my mom had that opportunity and was brave enough to do the unconventional. I grew up thinking women were as smart and strong as men. But my friends' mothers were more like this author--living in the 1950's world of dependency on men.It seems to me Ms. Halbreich's soul journey in this life involved learning to be independent because ultimately, in New York, she had to. She was so brave!!! And became such a cool person, an artist really, and helped a lot of people. She became multi-dimensional and ultimately whole. Right on sister!!

Betty Rocks!A refreshing bio with no holds barred, Betty actually wants me to learn how to shop and dress clients again. Only she can make a retail career be artistic, psychological and be full of wit, charm and chilling honesty. I love her daily routine of hunting and gathering throughout all the nooks and crannies of the store unearthing treasures hidden or forgotten by others. Her keen eye and brain leave no stone unturned and suddenly its all a wonderful sport. She progressed for a spoiled little girl to a woman on top of her game with sheer will and hard work. Those stories always appeal cuz there a lot of women out there who had no choice but to scurry up the ladder to forget their tears and carve a place for themselves in the business world. I completely relate to her climb and happiness in her world. THis book is an inspiration and a great read from a open and brave sister who beat the odds despite indulgent parents, a beastly husband and other hurdles. Betty, I love ya.

Great book about that era but would have loved occasional photos in the book as I was going along reading - I had to have my apple phone with me while reading and be frequently looking up photos of the people and the High End department stores talked about in the book.

a fluffy book, lots and lots about clothes. I love fashion, but this was a bit trite statement on fashion trends. I admire the ability of the author to remake herself, but it is hardly a rags to riches story, she had lots of connections that led to her jobs in fashion. That being said, the author carved out her niche and was successful with a very tough clientele clearly because she was honest and had an eagle-eye toward what works and fits her clients. She is spunky, no self-pity, and very clear-eyed on the mistakes she made.

I’m a seventy-two-year-old man and I couldn’t care less about the world of fashion. I received the offer on Book Bub and idly read some reviews. What made me order it “with one click” I’ll never know; however, I found it totally engrossing.It’s not so much about the world of fashion as it is about a very plucky lady who sleepwalks through her early (privileged) life, endures a bad marriage (albeit filled with glamor), but eventually making lemonade from the lemons he is given.Betty Halbreich’s life was filled with a passion for fashion, inherited from her mother, and somehow, again, sleepwalks through various difficulties of her life and ultimately uses her fashion sense to become personal shopper extraordinaire to the swells who shop at Bergdorf Goodman; she had no skills worth anything except how to dress stylishly, and ultimately, a good heart. Utilizing these – or shall I say, having no other skills – she ends up doing the only thing she knows: how to dress and how to help others in that (frivolous) profession.Trust me, if you go beyond the surface, you'll learn Betty's secret to a happy life – or find the secret to living life happily: work at something you love. At eighty-six (!), she puts in a full day at Bergdorf’s and has a good time doing it without having the time to realize her age and aches and pains.I sleepwalked through two careers and the age of fifty, found my passion, directing theater. For the last twenty-one years, I have no time to get old, feel old, and cluck about all the wasted years. Betty Halbreich’s story – especially her summing up her life in the last chapter – is my story.I loved this book and I became very fond of her after sharing her story.

A great book, really enjoyed it. If you're interested in fashion this has a good balance between an engaging and very human story with some funny anecdotes and puns. A really good read.

This book is amazing for all the fashion love here!

MERAVIGLIOSOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO SEMBRA DI ESSERE A NEW YORK CON LEI NEI VARI PIANI ... A SCEGLIERE I VESTITI !!! CULTURA.... PURE QUESTA è CULTURA!!!

In diesem Buch geht es um viele Dinge, Kleider, Style, Designer (oder eben nicht), mehr oder weniger (in Europa) bekannte Namen aus über 40 Jahren amerikanischer Showgeschichte, aber vor allem geht es um das Leben der Betty Halbreich, geboren in den 20ern des letzten Jahrhunderts. Wie sie aufwächst, überbehütet, eigentlich für ein eigenständiges Leben nicht ausgerüstet und sich dann schmerzlich ihren eigenen Weg suchen muss, als der von den Eltern vorgegebene Pfad eben nicht so verläuft, wie von jenen erhofft. Das Buch mag nicht hochstehende Literatur sein und wird allenfalls auch als Haushaltspsychologie abgetan ("viele kaufen Kleider um eine innere Leere zu füllen"), aber ich denke, dass dies hier auch nicht der Anspruch ist, sondern einfach Wahrnehmungen widergibt, welche die Dame in knapp 40 Jahren als Personal Shopper gemacht hat. Ich habe das Buch sehr gerne gelesen, es ist spannend erzählt, auch wenn ich mir für mich nichts als Stil-Empfehlung herauspicken kann, doch dazu ist es ja auch nicht gemacht. Lediglich die letzten ca 30 Seiten sind etwas verwässert, deshalb nur 4.8 Sterne, aber alles in allem sehr gelungen.

A very enjoyable read and a glimpse into a bygone era.