By definition, every It Girl has a short shelf life: she's destined to be replaced by a fresher iteration. In the shimmering but substantive It Girl: The Life and Legacy of Jane Birkin, Marisa Meltzer doesn't overstate her subject's artistic talents, which weren't stratospheric, but she convincingly argues that those contributions deserve consideration.
Jane Birkin (1946-2023) was born in London to an artsy well-to-do family. Growing up, she was taunted for her "boyish" physique, which she would eventually parlay into a much-imitated look. As an adolescent, Birkin pursued acting work, which wasn't completely sidelined when, at 18, she entered into a volatile marriage to composer John Barry; they had a child in 1967, the same year she left Barry. In 1968, Birkin met the French actor and musician Serge Gainsbourg while auditioning for a French film; she would become his co-star, as well as his partner and frequent musical collaborator for the next dozen years. For a time, they were among the world's most famous couples.
It Girl leans heavily on Birkin's published diaries, but Meltzer (Glossy) is a savvy interpreter. While recognizing that her subject is a hard sell as a feminist--Birkin was always blithe about the physical violence that Gainsbourg directed at her--Meltzer exults in Birkin's free-spiritedness. In particular, Meltzer shows how her fuss-free personal style (the Birkin bag gets its own chapter) helped jettison some of the era's more onerous beauty standards for women (hourglass figure, heavy makeup). Indebted to Birkin are It Girls present and future, among others. --Nell Beram, author and freelance writer