TALLEY-ING UP: André Leon Talley has locked in the number-six slot on The New York Times’ bestseller list for hardcover nonfiction with his new memoir.
”The Chiffon Trenches” created a firestorm of publicity in recent weeks, primarily due to Talley’s critique of his former boss, Vogue’s Anna Wintour. The book centers on his storied career, but it also addresses other aspects of his life like sexual abuse, weight struggles and ageism. Consumer interest in the book was so strong that his publisher Ballantine moved up the release date to May 19 from September and greenlighted a second run before it was officially out. The strategy seems to have worked, given Talley’s swift ascent to the bestseller list. Glennon Doyle ranked first for “Untamed,” followed by Michelle Obama for “Becoming.”
Talley’s recent interviews with Gayle King on “CBS This Morning” and Tamron Hall on her eponymous talk show surely helped to sell a few books. But Talley said he was still surprised to make the bestseller list in seven days.
“Thrilled but kind of stunned by the whole thing,” Talley said, adding the accolade has been “somewhat distilled by this whole horror that has happened in Minneapolis [referring to the death of George Floyd
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