Brazen - Julia Haart

Brazen

By Julia Haart

  • Release Date: 2022-04-12
  • Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Score: 4
4
From 188 Ratings

Description

WALL STREET JOURNAL AND USA TODAY BESTSELLER • From the star of the Netflix reality series My Unorthodox Life, a riveting, inspiring memoir of one woman’s escape from an extremist religious sect and an extraordinary rise from housewife to shoe designer, to CEO and co-owner of the modeling agency Elite World Group

“An irresistible read . . . Written with great intensity and rare candor, Brazen is a story of longing for more and manifesting that vision.”—Tommy Hilfiger

Ever since she was a child, every aspect of Julia Haart’s life—what she wore, what she ate, what she thought—was controlled by the dictates of ultra-Orthodox Judaism. At nineteen, after a lifetime spent caring for her seven younger siblings, she was married off to a man she barely knew. For the next twenty-three years, her marriage would rule her life. Eventually, when Haart’s younger daughter, Miriam, started to innocently question why she wasn’t allowed to sing in public, run in shorts, or ride a bike without being covered from neck to knee, Haart reached a breaking point. She knew that if she didn’t find a way to leave, her daughters would be forced into the same unending servitude that had imprisoned her.

So Haart created a double life. In the ultra-Orthodox world, clothing has one purpose—to cover the body, head to toe—and giving any thought to one’s appearance beyond that is considered sinful, an affront to God. But when no one was looking, Haart would pore over fashion magazines and sketch designs for the clothes she dreamed about wearing in the world beyond her Orthodox suburb. She started preparing for her escape by educating herself and creating a “freedom” fund. At the age of forty-two, she finally mustered the courage to flee the fundamentalist life that was strangling her soul.

Within a week of her escape, Haart founded a shoe brand, and within nine months, she was at Paris Fashion Week. Just a few years later, she was named creative director of La Perla. Soon she would become co-owner and CEO of Elite World Group, and one of the most powerful people in the fashion industry. Along the way, her four children—Batsheva, Shlomo, Miriam, and Aron—have not only accepted but embraced her transformation.

Propulsive and unforgettable, Haart’s story is the journey from a world of no to a world of yes, and an inspiration for women everywhere to find their freedom, their purpose, and their voice.

Reviews

  • Fun read

    5
    By AM KC
    I really enjoyed this book! Such an interesting life and well written.
  • Inspiring

    4
    By lau ar
    Nice story
  • Maybe not Brazen but Driven

    4
    By mps1973
    I watched both seasons of the series. I had to read the book ! This woman is my hero. I love her commitment to her children and her brand. I am cradle Catholic. I’m not a church goer but, I still pray to the Saints for inter session as well as my Mom and Dad and of course God through his son Jesus Christ. I believe in the healing power of crystals and chakra. I had an opportunity, to move to Dallas and run a job site. I balked. If only, maybe things would have turned my way, I had the experience. Maybe I wouldn’t be alone and caring for my invalid sister. 12 years older than I. God bless you for your examples of fortitude and resilience.
  • Awesome

    5
    By katjujuroo
    Amazing. Brave woman.
  • Best book!

    5
    By charliel1984
    Amazing and truthful! Educational and real!

Comments