The book is set in Paris in the workrooms of Chanel and traces the story of Isabelle Vartlet who is a seamstress there. It gives you a ton of information and a real feel for what it might have been like to sew for Chanel and other designers of the period and the descriptions of the clothing are wonderful.
I have to say that Isabelle was a bit annoying and not very interesting. It was where she went and what she saw that kept me turning the pages rather than what she thought or felt about it. It is pretty improbable that she would have walked into the job she did with the experience that she had but it was wonderful to read about the system of sewing, the customers and Chanel herself.
I have to admit that I knew very little of the period and I'm not a disciple of haute couture, but this book was a good place to start learning (it has a bibliography of factual books) and I really enjoyed reading it.
The book did the rounds of bloggers a few months back now so I will leave my review short and sweet. If you're interested in what it might have been like to sew for Chanel then pick it up, I know I will be reading more about her and the sewing rooms in the future after reading this.