Beyond Beauty: Girls Speak Out on Looks, Style and Stereotypes [Paperback]

Jane Pratt (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 23, 1997

Jane Pratt, founder of Sassy magazine and the voice of teens in the 1990s, presents the personal opinions of 24 young female celebrities--including skater Oksana Baiul, actress Christina Ricci, singer Monica, and model Filippa--on beauty, style, health, diet, and fitness. 200 color photos.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Gr. 6^-9. "Beautiful is confidence, beautiful is smart, beautiful is dedication, beautiful is unusual rather than samesamesame." That's the message Pratt, founder of Sassy and Jane magazines, wants to convey in this oversize book of personal profiles of young women, a few of whom (like LeAnn Rimes and Oksana Baiul) will be known to readers. The girls, who range in age from 14 to 19, seem nicely varied in terms of personality and interests--from model to equestrian to zine "edatrix." The single "virtual" profile of Kyoko Date (a computer-generated 17-year-old complete with pictures and a favorite movie, Toy Story) is the most bizarre. During the course of four or five pages, the girls talk about what they do for fun, about their work and their clothes, and, occasionally, about what they think beauty is. Except perhaps for Kyoko's "opinions," there are no real surprises in what the girls have to say; the profiles seem more chatty than salient to Pratt's goal. But there's no denying the appeal of the photos--posed and candid, in black and white and color--which makes this a good book to put out on the display table. Stephanie Zvirin

Product Details

• Paperback: 159 pages
• Publisher: Three Rivers Press; 1st edition (September 23, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0609801481
• ISBN-13: 978-0609801482
• Product Dimensions: 13.4 x 9.8 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #184,521 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #26 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > Arts & Music > Art > Fashion
  • #49 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > People & Places > Social Issues > Abuse

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant! Best Book of 1997!, December 27, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Beyond Beauty: Girls Speak Out on Looks, Style and Stereotypes (Paperback)

The Natalie Portman cover photo says it all! This book is a masterpiece! I could not put it down. An enthralling and personal look into the psyche of teenage girls everywhere. Ambitious, personal, and erotic. Highly Recommended!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars AWESOME!, July 7, 2003

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Beyond Beauty (Hardcover)

Heylo
i just wanted to say that this book was really inspiring and helped me to understand different people (be more open). Anyway this book inspired me to write my own book about me and my friends, who knows it might get published someday. oh yah and just for the record i am 15 i'm just too lazy to sign up haha

11 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars The book fails to offer a genuinely alternative perspective., August 23, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Beyond Beauty: Girls Speak Out on Looks, Style and Stereotypes (Paperback)

Beyond Beauty delivers a conflicting message that is potentially quite destructive. While the author purports to offer an alternative perspective with regards to conceptions of beauty, in fact the book goes on to highlight very conventional and superficial aspects of physical attractiveness. If a book were to really explore aspects of personhood "beyond beauty", it might explore elements of achievement that have nothing to do with physical appearance. Instead, author Jane Pratt delves headlong into make-up tips and photographs of pretty faces, while giving lip service to the need for girls to move beyond obsession with physical attractiveness. This kind of double message is potentially destructive, since it promises an alternative to those who might be desperate for one, then proceeds to offer the status quo. A reader who actually hopes to find a message in this book with substance, a perspective that actually differs from that in Seventeen Magazine (or Sassy magazine, or Jane magazine) will be sorely dissappointed. Beyond Beauty, this book is titled? Where, then, are pictures of the teenagers with physical disabilities, who face challenges multiple times every day, and still prevail? Where are pictures of teens with intellectual limitations who continue to strive to do THEIR very best, regardless of where that perfomrance falls on the normal curve of achievement? Where are the stories of young women who have suffered accidents or disfigurement, yet have managed to come to terms with the fact they look different from most other people and have found meaning in areas of life that are "beyond beauty"? Sources that claim to offer a "different" or "alternative" perspective, then proceed to offer the standard fare, only serve to strengthen the status quo. The status quo with regards to teenage girls and the need to be beautiful is a cruel and unforgiving standard and one that should not be perpetuated. Unfortunately, that is what this book does. It is another version of the in-crowd's high school yearbook, disguised only in terms of its title.