A delightful biography of an icon! I found Meltzer’s writing to stay very on topic and I appreciated the way the book was structured - mostly chronologically but with some specific chapters about topics, like the eponymous bag.

I learned a ton about Jane Birkin I did not know and would recommend this to anyone interested in her life. It is a holistic look at her life, a feminist’s perspective as well as it does not make Jane take accountability for her partners’ behavior, but rather puts her relationships in context.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I am not a fashionista and did not even know what a Birkin bag was until very recently (I carry a backpack for the same reasons Birkin carried her basket (manuscripts, etc.), but came to this book largely because of the time period and music angle, and England and France. I found it an absolutely fascinating look at a complicated woman. I’m still absorbing it, sorting out what I think of her choices. But it is definitely worth reading.

Marisa Meltzer shows us Jane Birkin beyond the iconic bag, beyond the striped shirts and ballet flats. This biography portrays a young woman navigating the weight of expectations and trying to understand who she was.

We see her early days in London, her family’s upper middle class background, and how her mother was connected to Winston Churchill’s daughter, who later became Jane’s godmother. The book traces her first interactions with older men, helping us understand her complicated relationships later in life. It reveals how she was both sheltered and yet exposed to things she should not have been, and how sometimes what feels like our worst experiences can open the way to self discovery.

What stayed with me is how someone so different from me could still feel familiar. In her obsessions, repeating the same clothing choices until they became part of her, I recognized pieces of myself. Even her simple basket bag, carried everywhere, eventually grew into something larger and became a cultural icon. What this book reminded me is that there is power in simplicity, in being certain of who you are, and in choosing yourself, because authenticity can leave the most lasting mark.

I was not very familiar with Jane Birkin when I picked this title. I thought it was a book about one of Andy Warhol's 'IT' girls. The book goes into great details about Jane's life, loves, her film roles and music, her kids and grand kids. Her life was both successful and tragic and I finished this book in a very short time. I would recommend it for anyone who is curious about Jane or who likes reading biographies.

While the overall writing was good, this biography felt very surface level. I appreciate a biography that is easy to follow but this one felt too linear as if the author was too focused on making sure each chronological step was met. I feel like I learned the basic story of who what where and when but I didn’t walk away feeling like I really understood Birkin.


Thank you to the publisher for the ARC

Thank you to Atria Books and Net Galley for the ARC of It Girl.
Jane Birkin led an interesting life. While she may be known these days for being the inspiration behind the meaning of the Hermès Birkin Bag, she had a long career as an actress and singer. Over the years, she tried to balance a public career while balancing motherhood and marriage, with all of those events beginning in her early adulthood. Meltzer details (some from Birkin’s journals) how Birkin tried to define her life on her own terms, even as she dealt with the ups and downs of marriage and partnerships while attempting to build a career based on her talent as an actress and singer.

Thank you to NetGalley for approving this ARC for review. This book offers an in-depth look at a figure many of us thought we already knew, but it reveals dimensions of her life that go beyond the surface. It explores not only the brand but also the family dynamics, personal relationships, and the values that have shaped her story. What emerges is a portrait that highlights compassion, care, and the ways in which influence and resources can be used to create a meaningful impact.

I really enjoyed It Girl 2025 and came away with a fuller sense of Jane Birkin as a person, especially as a mother. The book paints her in such a tender light, not just as the fashion icon or muse she’s often reduced to, but as someone who deeply loved her children and carried that role with all its joys and heartbreaks. That part felt especially moving, and I think it’s what will stay with me most.

At the same time, I found that a lot of the narrative focused on the men in her life. Of course, Serge Gainsbourg, Jacques Doillon, and John Berry were hugely important to her story, but at times their presence felt overwhelming, almost crowding out Jane’s own inner voice. I would have loved to see more of her thoughts, reflections, and contradictions in her own words. The book touches on her journals, but I kept wishing the author had included more direct quotes from them. Those glimpses into Jane’s private world were some of the most powerful passages, and I wanted more of that intimacy.

Overall, though, it’s a warm and engaging portrait. Even with its emphasis on the men around her, the book succeeds in showing Jane Birkin’s complexity: the vulnerability, the humor, the insecurities, and the resilience. It’s not a perfect balance, but it did leave me with a deeper appreciation for her—not just as a style icon, but as a woman navigating art, fame, and motherhood in a very public world.

3.75 ⭐ thank you Atria Books and NetGalley for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own!

As someone who knows just the surface level story of Jane Birkin, I found It Girl fascinating and a thoroughly researched biography that goes beyond her “style icon” reputation. Meltzer covers Birkin’s life from childhood through her later years, highlighting her artistry, activism, and cultural influence. I especially appreciated how the book explored her as a complex woman rather than just a muse, though I did wish for more depth in her adult years and her humanitarian work. As someone who doesn’t often read biographies or memoirs, I truly did find It Girl to be engaging and an insightful read. I would definitely recommend this for anyone interested in fashion, film, or feminist history—and a worthy tribute to a woman whose legacy extends far beyond the Birkin bag.

Wow what an incredible life and incredible read. I only knew of Jane Birkin because she inspired the Birkin bag but she was so much more and this book really dug deep into her life and Abel she was. It was really well written. Thanks NetGallery!

It was a great read to learn more about who Jane was behind the bag and her style. Although I wish it had gone into more of her later career and non-profit work and her pursuit to make an identity outside of her romantic relationships.

It Girl is the story of Jane Birkin (yes, of Birkin bag fame), an icon of the 1960s--primarily, it would seem, just for being herself. She was admired, copied, followed. She sang, acted in many films, and was involved in a highly publicized and romanticized relationship with Serge Gainsbourg (who was a well-known French singer/songwriter, actor, composer and director.

Birkin was born to an affluent English family, attending well-established and well-known schools who moved to France in her late teens and somehow drifted into fame and, if not fortune, at least a living. Her first short marriage was a disaster, her second (to famed composer John Barry) tumultuous and longer lasting partnership with Serge Gainsbourg also tumultuous as well as passionate. Birkin recorded an album with Gainsbourg and, despite not ever fully mastering the language, became the prototype of "the French girl."

Birkin had three long term relationships and came out of each with a daughter. She was an adoring mother if somewhat unorthodox and determined to remain relevant and fun, she and Gainsbourg lived their life freely and extravagantly, bringing the children with them. All three daughters achieved fame for themselves in the creative arts. I am most familiar with Kate Barry's photography. Gifted and struggling with substance abuse issues since adolescence, Barry died at 46 years old in a fall from in what was considered most likely a suicide. Some of the most moving pages in this book are about Barry's death and Birkin's devastation.

In Meltzer's very entertaining account, Birkin comes across as likable, quirky, a woman who was for years only the image of the gaze of other people. Birkin struggled to develop her own identity as an artist and ultimately as someone other than part of a romantic couple. She kept a journal, which Meltzer quotes frequently, giving us a better sense of the woman in her own words.

Birkin appeared in Blow-Up in a small role which, nevertheless garnered much attention and in two Agatha Christie films. After reading this book, I tracked down a copy of Beautiful Troublemaker--a wonderful film with a fascinating performance by Birkin.

One of the best qualities of this book is that it created in me an interest in its subject so that I did things like track down films she is in and recordings of her singing. (My opinion: Birkin as an appealing if somewhat thin voice--I'm not sure how "good" she is, but like the clothes she wore, and the wicker basket she carried, she became a huge success in her adopted country)

This is a delightful book, interesting, engaging, fun and at times moving. It brought back a time, an era of which I was just becoming aware at the time and highlights a major trendsetter in it. It held my interest throughout.

In short, I loved it and better than most celebrity bios.

My thanks to Atria Books, NetGalley and the author for providing me with a free advance copy of the book i9 exchange for an honest review. It Girl will be published October 7, 2025.

I didn't know much about Jane Birkin beyond that she inspired the infamous bag. I think this book could have worked better as an article as the book despite being under 250 pages felt too long.


Thank you Netgalley & Atria Books.

Beyond the bag..

She’s got style, acting chops and musical talent. A triple threat.

To define, Jane Birkin, solely by an (albeit, renowned fashion accessory) is a disservice. To view her from the lens of her relationships minimizes her impact on French culture (acting, music and fashion). On the contrary, her tumultuous love affairs proved, at times, the springboard for growth as a woman.

Interesting parallels drawn not just with her like but others and the recent #metoomovement.

This ARC was provided by the publisher, Atria, via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

4.0/5.0 stars
Definite recommend

This was a well-researched biography that thoroughly covered Jane Birkin's life from cradle to grave. It included insights from her diaries, previous published work, and insights from those close to her.

Jane was a trend-setter who knew how to be stylish yet comfortable. She was a muse, a daughter, a mother, a wife, a lover, a grandmother, a model, an artist, a singer, and most of all: Jane.

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7826834975 - posted 8/25/2025
The StoryGraph: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/251d462e-9042-42af-b526-d6aafef25d7d?redirect=true - posted 8/25/2025
Substack: https://rb.gy/4a9869 - posted 8/25/2025

It was interesting to learn about the life of Jane Birkin. Known for her style and the bag named after her, there was so much more to her. It reads more like an profile article than a story you can get lost in, but it was a worthwhile read for those wanting to learn more about Jane.

This was an interesting read! I didn’t know anything about Jane Birkin other than she inspired the bag going into it. I learned a lot about a complicated woman with an impressive career.

I genuinely enjoyed this! I knew nothing about Jane birkin except for the bag. What an interesting life she led!

This was a really interesting book!! I honeslty had no knowledge of Jane Birkin before her death other than that she was the one for whom the Hermes Birkin bag was created, but the way Meltzer wove the narrative of her life and the way it was both affected by and on society was really fascinating. Such a cool biography and history of a woman who was most well known (to me) in the 21st century as the creator/inspiration of the icon bag.

It Girl is an addictive blend of celebrity biography, pop culture history, and sharp commentary on fame. Meltzer’s writing is warm and witty, making the behind-the-scenes world of her subject feel both glamorous and surprisingly human. I loved how she balanced juicy details with thoughtful observations about ambition, image, and reinvention. It’s the kind of book that makes you want to Google every reference and rewatch old clips just to soak up the vibe. Even if you’re not deeply familiar with the fashion and entertainment scene, the storytelling is so engaging you’ll be hooked. Smart, entertaining, and just the right amount of gossipy—It Girl is a total page-turner.