My apologies to the publicist who I told I would review this book - I know it’s been a lot longer than is reasonable! I read this book almost as soon as I got it, but I just haven’t sat down until now to actually review it.

Here is a photo of the cover:


Now all in all, this is a well put together book. The format is very modern but comfortable. This is more of a pick-up-and-browse book than one that you’d sit down to read altogether. The feel of the book is great and the border of each page is different, as well as the layout on each page. It’s very colorful and the cover has glossy images printed on a matte paper. It reminds me of a journal that has entries from a lot of different people with different personalities. There is also a page in the back for you to put your own entry in. The binding will crack if it’s opened all of the way and there is a small crack on the inside where the cover meets the binding. I guess that’s to be expected from a paperback.

Now on to the content: It’s written by many girls and each page contains a mini essay or poem about what these teenage authoresses think beauty is. Quoted from the introduction, by Woody Winfree, editor:

The truth is, however, that beauty is not measured by the clothes we wear, the style of our hair, or the size of our waists. Beauty is not one size, one look, one color, or one definition. Rather, beauty is an expression of our talents, interests, contributions, thoughts, accomplishments, dreams, and potential to do great things.”

God has created beautiful things, and I think the big link to true beauty is missing in this book. We’re all fallen humans and we can’t really embrace true beauty until we embrace The Truth. I think it’s amiss to write a book to celebrate beauty without explicitly crediting God and worshiping Him for the beauty He has created. After all, what makes a flower grow? Who gave you the talent that you have? We really have no self given beauty, and the focus and praise shouldn’t be on us and our abilities. As I’m flipping through the book I see a lot of “I’m beautiful because I’m me.” Or “I’m beautiful because I say so.”

It’s interesting to read what 12-19 year olds have to say about this. I remember life being very different at 12 than it is now, 8 years later. Interesting read, but I can’t rave about it because of my disagreeing with the underlying philosophy concerning beauty. Many thanks to the publicist for sending a copy to review and to the editor, Woody Winfree for letting me know about it and offering me an opportunity to review it :)

Posted by Bonnie under Uncategorized, book review, books

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