I really wanted this book to be a bit more than it was. Yes, the author is in love with Audrey (as are so many of us) and interested in the real cultural impact that she had, but that's about all that really goes deeper than gossip about a film.

Sadly he really misses the chance to address the outright racism of the film or the longer lasting effects of it, choosing instead to point it out and leave.

Still, for fans of Audrey and filmmaking it's a fun fast read.

Entertaining background on the movie and its star. Enjoyable light reading.

I would say this book is for true fans of Breakfast at Tiffany's, or more likely, those who are interested in the history of movie making. Fifth Avenue, 5 A.M. is filled with names and places and little, almost gossipy, stories. All of which is not really my thing, I am not the target audience for this book. But I can see where the target audience could give it a higher rating. It is well written and flows, a little bit, like a novel. For those who are interested in the subject material, this would most likely be very enjoyable to read.

To really get this one, I'd suggest rereading Breakfast at Tiffany's and watching the movie again.

It's readable, but as someone who is a huge film buff and who has read extensively on the history of filmmaking, I took issue with some of Wasson's pronouncements. Wasson contends that stars are creations of the studios. While certainly stars were shaped and polished by the studios (and today by their various handlers), to imply that anyone could just create an Audrey Hepburn or a Marilyn Monroe is absurd. That's a minor nit, but it colored how I read the rest of the book.

He also despises Edith Head which I found mystifying. Her failure to acknowledge Givenchy when she won the Oscar for Sabrina is well known and was deplorable. Her career was also on a marked downswing as Hepburn's was rising, but her contributions to film are substantial--certainly more substantial as a whole than someone like Axelrod or even arguably Blake Edwards.

More troubling to me was the fairly shallow take on women in the Fifties. Pop social history has its place, but it has its definite limitations and should not be taken as gospel.

Still, the structure of this book is excellent. To follow all the aspects a film from conception to birth is not an easy thing and Wasson manages to present it in a clear and compelling manner.

Some fun details but the author over writes and over states his case something awful. Still, lots of interesting factoids for fans of the movie.

Just the escape I needed. With a little something to think about, even!
Now, to re-watch the movie and read the original story. The Dawn of the Modern Woman, indeed! I missed the sociological commentary when I saw the movie -- Is it there?

Easy read - I have to watch the film now! I loved hearing the details of Audrey's personal life and her onscreen.

A wonderful, insightful look into the making of one of the best classic movies of all time. Although documentary in nature, this book reads like a novel that keeps the reader interested from start to finish.

Interesting background on the development and production of Breakfast at Tiffany's. However, given the title, I was hoping for more coverage of what it meant to be a "modern woman" in the 1960s and how this definition was influenced by both the movie and its leading lady.