The King of Style: Dressing Michael Jackson

When I first heard about this book I wasn't very interested. That's because I'm not really a clothes/fashion person so even though I like Michael Jackson's music and dance, reading about his clothes did not seem that interesting. Then a friend of mine bought it and sang praises about how beautiful this book is. So I decided to order a copy. When it arrived I was immediately impressed and pleasantly surprised. I somehow did not expect it to be this big and it is really beautifully done. Great pictures, quality work. And now I read it too. It's an absolutely amazing book, one of the best I have ever read about MJ! It made me laugh and (the last chapters) cry. It isn't just about clothes, it's about Michael and his art. After all these clothes are a part of his creative vision, a part of his artistry and legacy in ways I have not really realized and appreciated before reading this book. As we learn from it Michael's clothes weren't thought out by some PR team or a team of designers who decided about what should be his image. No, that's not Michael Jackson! His clothes were mainly based on his own ideas and his creative visions - and then Dennis Tompkins and Michael Bush helped to realize them, often adding their own ideas, but it was always MJ who was the driving force behind them. Michael wanted his clothes to be trademark, yet always wanted to come up with something new, something larger than life, something magical. And he did. Many of his clothes are breathtakingly beautiful, others are funny - as bringing humor and a tongue-in-cheak attitude into it was important for MJ too. He was a true artist in every sense of the word, always creating in every way, and that wasn't just limited to writing music or creating choreographies, but also to creating his trademark and fascinating wardrobe. From this book we learn about the creative process behind many of the clothes we have seen on Michael over the years. However it isn't just a story of the clothes, but the book also has lots of stories about Michael, it gives an insight into what kind of person he was: driven and creative beyond belief, demanding, sometimes annoying, but also fun and funny and had a golden heart, wonderment and a childlike personality in the most positive sense of the word. It also tells the story of two very talented craftsmen who became true artists under Michael Jackson's guidance because he always challenged and pushed them to think outside of the box and to be creative. As much as the book is a tribute to Michael Jackson it is also a tribute to Dennis Tomkins (who died in 2011) by Michael Bush. I think this book is a "must have" for Michael Jackson fans, but it's also a great read if you are not really a fan, but you are interested in clothes and costumes which are unsusual and outside of the general fashion trends or if you are interested in showbusiness and larger than life entertainment and how the creative mind of such a genius of an entertainer ticked. Absolutely stunning book!

I'm stunned by this book, it's a fascinating journey into the genius of these three men that worked so closely together for all those years. If I wasn't a fan I'd still love the book, you don't need to be a fan to enjoy this one. I've bought a lot of Michael Jackson books over the years, but this one is right up there in the top five imho, I felt close to Michael reading it but not in an intrusive way, I felt like I was along for the trip not just watching the trip happen. It's written so well in amazing detail, and the photographs of Michael's clothes are breathtaking, you can see the exquisite detail of the stitching and decoration. Oh to have those skills! The stories about Michael's little foibles made me giggle, he was a demanding little toad but wow he got the best from his friends because of his drive and determination that they, as well as he, were perfectionists. It's clear to see that these guys respected and loved each other dearly, I'm so glad I got this book, if you haven't yet and you have the cash - get it - you won't regret it. The little note to the fans at the end of the acknowledgments section made me sob like a baby, it's beautiful - thank you Michael Bush, so hard for you to lose your partner as well as Michael too it must have been hard to write the book at all at times. Now I'm gonna read it again.

I've been waiting ages for this book to be released as I just knew it was going to be a good one:-). It is full of tons of pictures of MJ's stunning jackets, outfits which everyone will remember seeing him in. Michael Bush is the guy that dressed Michael Jackson and he shares some great strories of MJ in this book, it also shows how much input MJ liked to have in his outfits and the idea's that he came up with. It shows all the outfits that we all remember such as The History gold outfit, the dangerous suit, 1993 Grammy awards jacket and many more, it also describes what work went into each outfit and how long they took to reach the final garment. Whether your fan or not you will enjoy this book, just looking through pages and pages of stunning outfits of MJ's was AMAZING. Towards the end of the book it also shows some of the gorgeous outfits that were being prepared for what would have been Michael's This is it tour. The book is alot bigger than i expected to. Thankyou Mr Bush you have done MJ proud. Definitely one of my favourite MJ books.

Although Michael Jackson is one of my favourite topics, I rarely buy books written about him as they hardly ever contain anything new to me (and often contain questionable information and pure speculation). However, I bought "The King of Style" and I am so so happy that I did. It is absolutely gorgeous and a MUST for any MJ fan or costume/fashion enthusiast. It is lovely to browse through the book and see all the familiar pieces, beautifully photographed. It also didn't hurt that I enjoy sewing/garment construction and the information in the book is fascinating to me from that perspective, as well. However, what makes the book truly special are the anecdotes of how the author and MJ came up with the ideas and designs. They warm the hearts of the fans who still feel his passing very sorely indeed.

Consigliato a tutti i fans del Re. Bellissimo libro scritto con amore e delicatezza. Descrive la nascita dei costumi di Michael, insieme alla storia della loro amicizia e uno sguardo sulla personalità di Michael. Molto interessante, commovente la parte finale. Bellissime foto. Ottima qualità di stampa.

ファッションだけでなく素のマイケルが見られる一面も・・・！ 私にとって彼の遺品を購入することは夢で終わりそうですが、これを見ていれば全てが私の物のようで幸せになれます。 日本で開催されたマイケル展で購入するよりも、直接輸入した方が遥かに安かったのは未だに不思議です！ 状態も良かったし梱包もしっかりしていた。

Excelente libro, magnifica calidad

Lo compré porque mi madre es fan de Michael Jackson", y aunque está en inglés, le recomendaron el artículo por su valor fotográfico yla verdad que es fabuloso la de imagenes que trae a todo color. Venia bien embalado (no es novedad siendo de Amazon) yllego a tiempo para el regalo de reyes magos.

a very nice book with wonderfuö pictures and well written. I give 4/5 stars because it's maybe not that much mainstream and very detailed (fashion and making creation michaels costumes). So the book isn't a book for everyone, but a very good book for every MJ fan! Michael Bush was a loyal and long lasting friend of MJ and it's really a pleasure to see a positive and truthful book about MJ and how things were done behind the scenes. A good book, not only focusing on rumours or alligations,but putting more focuse on the hard work MJ and his crew have done and the talent,creativity and expertise MJ (as an artist) had.