Book Review: "In Your Face: The Culture of Beauty and You" by Shari Graydon

In Your Face: The Culture of Beauty and You

Authored by Shari Graydon

Published by Annick Press, 2004

Book Review by Lucine Kasbarian for IndyKids newspaper, Summer 2007

Did you know that to achieve a trendy pale complexion during the Middle Ages, women applied blood-sucking leeches to their faces?

Or that it was fashionable in China for women to bind their feet to demonstrate grace and wealth?

In Your Face: The Culture of Beauty and You explores what people in various cultures have done to, as the author puts it, “fit in, stick out or measure up.” In Your Face also explains why we place so much importance on appearances, who gets to decide what’s hot and what’s not and what forces shape our views about beauty.

This fact-filled book examines and challenges the lessons we’ve been taught from fairy tales, ancient mythology, popular movies and magazines.

In Your Face helps us put beauty into perspective so we can stop feeling so controlled and influenced by it. Fun, helpful tips for coping with the pressures around our looks also appear at the end of each chapter.

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