Friday 56 & #Book Beginnings: The Beauty Experiment



For Book Beginnings:
This is who I am: a woman. I'm a daughter, a sister, a friend, a wife, a mother. At age seven, I was a girl with braids and rainbow hair clips, and at thirteen, I became a teenager with acne, orthodontics, and teased bangs. At nineteen, I was a college student battling her freshman twenty-five, then a new graduate with a discount poly-blend office wardrobe. For nearly a decade after that, I was independent young woman in confusing relationships who paired thrift-store finds designer shoes. 
- p. ix

For Friday 56:
Pregnancy was the only truly acceptable reason for a woman to look unkempt and overwhelmed in Hong Kong, and any failing could happily be attributed to it—fatness, thinness, fatigue, eczema, bad hair, weird clothes. 
- p. 56

About The Beauty Experiment by Phoebe Baker Hyde: I looked at my reflection and despaired. As an exhausted young mother I felt ugly and saw that a new dress or face cream would never help. I was at risk of passing on a habit of feeling miserable about my looks to my baby girl—if nothing changed. 
Soon afterward Phoebe Baker Hyde made a vow: to give up new clothes, makeup, haircuts, and jewelry in hopes of revealing something she had always paid lip service to but never quite believed in—her inner beauty. The Beauty Experiment chronicles Hyde’s quest for self-acceptance in nothing but her own skin. In thoughtful, exquisite prose, Hyde holds up a mirror to all women and shows how perfectionism can keep us from achieving what we really want: happiness, confidence, and serenity.

We've all had bad hair days. What if we just rolled with it and simply just not use any make-up, not worry about how we look, or what we wear, and ... just get on with it? The author did just that in The Beauty Experiment. Would you be able to "survive" without all the trappings of womanhood today?

Buy This Book from Book Depository, Free Delivery World Wide

18 comments

  1. Interesting concept. Love the intro--it nicely describes the phases of a woman's life.

    My Friday post: http://www.bookclublibrarian.com/2014/01/friday-focus-friday-56-book-beginnings_24.html

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    1. The beginning really sets the stage for what the book sets out to prove. I think we are programmed early on to start thinking what is "girly."

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  2. This sounds like a very powerful and inspirational book. I am adding this to my list :)

    My post

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  3. This sounds like a very interesting book, I have thought the same about this issue often. When I was living in Canada for two years, with the people I was hanging out with and the lifestyle I was living, I never wore makeup a single day, and I only bought new clothes when my old ones were absolutely falling apart or didn't fit anymore. When I came back to Malaysia, I suddenly had to be a lot more conscious about the way I looked and was being constantly judged for it.

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    1. Didn't know you lived in Canada! I used to live in the Philippines in Metro Manila, and keeping up appearances was a huge part of being taken seriously at work. I find I'm pretty relaxed in Canada mainly because people dress for the weather over simply just looking good. Quite a relief.

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  4. This sounds like a great book. The Friday 56 blurb catches the eye almost as much as the beginning. I know I sure relate.

    Hope you'll visit me at http://www.thebusymomsdaily.com/2014/01/the-friday-56-week-162.html

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    1. I think any woman can relate to this, the author goes through different phases in life ...

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  5. I like the cover and the book sounds like something I would read. And I like the idea of being set in Hong Kong
    Ruty@THE FRIDAY 56

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  6. An interesting idea! Although I do believe the way people react to each other depends on their first impression, it would be interesting to see what the author of this book experienced. Here's the link to my Friday post: PICTURING PERFECT.

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  7. Oh this one sounds good! Great Share.

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  8. This sounds like a really interesting book! I am also one of those people who talks about inner beauty but constantly worries about whether my exterior is good enough, so perhaps I should try this myself! Here's my Friday post and I hope you have a good weekend :)
    Juli @ Universe in Words

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  9. Looking forward to seeing where the one takes you.

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  10. I'm interested. Sounds like my life, minus the Honk Kong part... lol
    Happy weekend!

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  11. I probably need to read this book, but I don't think I could do that….I don't want to scare young children!

    Linking from Friday 56,
    Ricki Jill

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  12. Beauty is different to everyone, but no less imprtant because of it's diversity. Dove have some inspiring videos about beauty! I would love to read this book, I say it would open my eyes more to the things that really matter, becoming more confident in myself and embracing my inner beauty :)

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  13. Very interesting. . . I always wonder about that kind of thing. . . like what if beauty wasn't so "prescribed"?

    Thank you for linking up to the Spread the Love Linky Party! I also pinned this!

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© guiltless readingMaira Gall