Brilliance and Fire, Rachelle Bergstein
Brilliance and Fire, Rachelle Bergstein
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Brilliance and Fire
A Biography of Diamonds

Author: Rachelle Bergstein

Narrator: Dara Rosenberg

Unabridged: 10 hr 36 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 08/02/2016


Synopsis

"A diamond is forever." Who among us doesn’t recognize this slogan and, with it, the fascination that diamonds hold in our collective imagination as emblems of royalty, glamor, and eternal love? Rachelle Bergstein's cultural biography illuminates the enticing, often surprising story of our society's enduring obsession with diamonds—and the people who have worked tirelessly to ensure their continued allure. Whether in the gilded ballrooms of New York City at the end of the nineteenth century or on the red carpets of today, diamonds have retained their coveted status throughout history. Along the way, they have also become our culture's abiding symbol of true love and marriage (with more than a little help from an advertising agency, hired to accomplish just that).

From the South African mines where most diamonds have been sourced since the late 1890s to the companies that have fought to monopolize them; from the likes of Audrey Hepburn, Elizabeth Taylor, and Kanye West, who have dazzled in them, to the people behind the scenes who have carefully crafted our understanding of their value—Brilliance and Fire offers a glittering history of the world’s most coveted gemstone and its greatest champions and most colorful enthusiasts.


About Rachelle Bergstein

Rachelle Bergstein, the author of Women from the Ankle Down, works at a literary agency in New York. She lives with her husband and their son in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Groot

This is an innocuous book mostly about how diamonds have been marketed, with a bit of history. There is virtually nothing about their science or any of the usual guy-oriented stuff I tend to like.......more

Writing a review to justify my 5 star rating. From what i can tell,people came into the book expecting something different, this is not a science or geology book ( and I have no clue why anyone would think it was if they read the blurb). This is the history of diamonds as a product, as most importan......more