7 books for beauty enthusiasts

Our appearance can communicate messages, sometimes intentional and sometimes not, telling who we are and conveying our mood. How we choose to do our makeup and style our hair can help us express our identity. According to Naomi Wolf, beauty products work on a dreamlike level and give us a protection that can't be found elsewhere. Applying makeup, doing skincare, and working on our appearance is both something society demands of us and something we feel the need to do to maintain a relationship with our bodies.

Beauty and Patriarchy: Naomi Wolf's Opinion

In her famous 1990 book The Beauty Myth, the writer and philosopher critiques the actual labor required of women to appear pleasant and in line with society's imposed aesthetic standards. If patriarchy initially demanded that women engage in care work, stay at home, and take care of the family, once women entered the male-dominated workforce, they were then asked to perform the work of beauty. For Naomi Wolf the construction of this unattainable ideal is a political intent that psychologically destroys women, engaging them in an endless quest and distracting them from fighting for what truly matters, such as a social role equal to men and free from aesthetic concerns. At the same time, beauty rituals are moments where we can connect with our bodies and learn to understand and listen to them. Below, I recommend some books that explore the theme of beauty in its various aspects, some more provocative than others.

Specchio delle mie brame. La prigione della bellezza - Maura Gancitano

In this essay, Maura Gancitano, drawing from the thoughts of Naomi Wolf and Betty Friedan, questions what beauty means today. The cult of beauty has only recently become a prison: as material constraints on women have begun to loosen, the aesthetic standards for their appearance have become rigid and suffocating, pushing them towards the pursuit of an unattainable perfection. The point is that with bourgeois society, the idea of beauty shifted from being an enigma to a standardized model that colonizes women's time and thoughts, often making them feel inadequate. The result is that we live in a time where people could finally be free, but where only what meets certain parameters is valued and respected. Rethinking beauty beyond indoctrination and consumption means seeing it as a path of personal flourishing, free from any kind of external conditioning. In this book, Maura Gancitano shows how discoveries in philosophy, anthropology, social psychology, and data science can shatter an illusion that still prevents us from listening to and following our authentic desires and living freely in our bodies.

Beauty Of The Beast - Emily Schubert

This manual teaches how to camouflage the body to temporarily transform it. Makeup artist Emily Schubert is an expert in the special effects makeup required in the film industry. From creating a fake scar to making someone look decades younger, these pages encapsulate Schubert's years of experience in the film industry. This book is both an intensive course in SFX makeup and a portal on how to manipulate the human face to tell a story. Inside you'll find: - An introduction to skin preparation, facial massage, and color theory - A foldable, illustrated tool kit detailing everything you need to become an SFX makeup artist - Step-by-step instructions for recreating key looks, including Alive, Dead, Young, Bald, Hairy, Bony, and Bloody - A manual on essential skills, such as covering a pimple, covering eyebrows, creating a scar, and more

La scienza dei cosmetici. Dalla skincare allo shampoo. Ingredienti, bufale & istruzioni per l’uso - Beatrice Mautino

Beatrice Mautino is a science communicator with a degree in Industrial Biotechnology who has specialized in the beauty sector over the years, revealing all the secrets behind cosmetics. In this book, she shares curious facts and information, always backed by scientific evidence, about what we apply to our skin every day. From how to properly read the INCI list to how much it really matters in evaluating the quality of a cosmetic, this book highlights, with clear and direct language and pop graphics, the truths of the vast world of cosmetics, framed beyond the myths and marketing promises, but also beyond the excessive scruples and fears of those who are skeptical of cosmetics and all things chemical. 

Skincare per tutti. La verità sulla cosmesi e la cura della pelle - Maria Pia Priore

Also on the topic of cosmetics, there is a book by Maria Pia Priore, the founder of Skin First, which answers some of the most common questions: How is our skin structured and what are its characteristics? Are silicones harmful? What are the best ingredients to fight acne? With the straightforward language that has made her famous on social media, she explains that she wrote "a guide for everyone who wants to take care of their skin in a conscious and rational way and at the same time a tool to identify skincare myths and avoid falling into the trap of advertising claims with no scientific basis." The book is packed with information and useful tips, explaining skincare products from a cosmetic and formulation perspective, the functional substances used in cosmetics, and much more.

La scienza dei capelli. Le verità, i falsi miti, il modo migliore per prendersene cura - Elena Accorsi Buttini

Knowledge and awareness are essential for intentionally choosing what we decide to use on our bodies. Elena Accorsi Buttini shares what she learned during her studies as a pharmacist and during her master's in trichology, revealing, in an accessible language, how our hair is composed. This book is not only useful for understanding what is best to do, and not to do, on our heads but also takes us on a journey about the social role and symbolism behind hair.

Marzahn, Mon Amour - Katja Oskamp

Beyond essays and manuals, the theme of beauty can also be central to actual novels. This is the case with Marzahn, Mon Amour, where forty-four-year-old Katja, contrary to what one might expect, enrolls in a beautician course and ends up doing pedicures in a Berlin neighborhood. This new job, which she soon discovers she loves, opens the doors to an intimacy made of small talk and big confessions. With an ironic and empathetic gaze, Oskamp condenses entire lives into a few pages, portraying the colorful mosaic of a community full of stories to be heard. It is precisely among calluses and massages that intense dialogues unfold and a miniature human comedy is staged.

Helena Rubinstein: The Woman Who Invented Beauty - Michèle Fitoussi

This biography traces the life of the woman who became one of the first entrepreneurs in the beauty industry. Born in 1872 in Krakow's Jewish quarter and the eldest of eight daughters, Helena Rubinstein became a tireless worker and created the famous cosmetics brand. From the first moisturizer to the first waterproof mascara, Madame Rubinstein managed to develop and produce countless innovations. This book is especially suitable for those who want to trace the history of the birth of the beauty industry.