When the Going Was Good

A MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK OF 2025 IN THE

INDEPENDENT, GQ, NEW STATESMAN, FINANCIAL TIMES

AND

BBC CULTURE

'Graydon Carter is a brilliant raconteur of his own life...it's a real yarn of a lost world' Marina Hyde, The Rest is Entertainment

When the Going Was Good

is Graydon Carter's lively recounting of how he made his mark as one of society's most talented editors and shapers of culture. Carter arrived in New York from Canada with little more than a suitcase, a failed literary magazine in his past and a keen sense of ambition. He landed a job at

Time

, went on to work at

Life

, co-founded

Spy

magazine and edited

The New York Observer

before catching the eye of Conde Nast chairman Si Newhouse, who tapped him to run

Vanity Fair

.

With his inimitable voice and raconteur's quip, Carter brings readers inside the drawing rooms of the great and not-always-good of America, Britain and Europe. He assembled one of the best-ever stables of writers and photographers under one roof, and here he re-creates in real time the steps he took to ensure that

Vanity Fair

during his 25-year run cemented its place as the epicentre of art, culture, business and politics. Charming, candid and brimming with humour,

When the Going Was Good

perfectly captures the last golden age of print magazines from the inside out.