Barbershops [ILLUSTRATED] (Paperback)

by Tally Abecassis (Author), Claudine Sauve (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 175 pages
• Publisher: Black Dog Publishing (May 30, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1904772145
• ISBN-13: 978-1904772149
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 7.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #686,953 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars in this case, you CAN judge a book by its cover, October 10, 2007

By	Richard A. Varga (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Admittedly I was a bit disappointed with this book. We all know barbershops have fallen in popularity from their heyday but in an age of retro love and resurgence, I was was looking for a book that was going to document and capture the classic, enticing nature of old barbershops. A classic, old style barber's chair is a true beauty to behold--with expert metal craftsmanship and complimentary upholstery. But, our cover's picture of a torn chair with its exposed stuffing is a perfect indication for the majority of this book. The photographic style--muted colors, low contrast, etc just end up lending to the overall depressing message of this book--that barbershops have long lost their allure as men's clubs and are stuck withering away in a 70s era of nothingness. There are some interviews with people who are still keeping the dream alive but again most of these are men in their 50s who end up literally dating the vitality of the clubs. This is not a celebration, but an obituary.
We have had a minor barbershop resurgence--look at Rudy's. Let's sweep the old hair off the floor and uncover the true beauty and social importance of these shops. And there is a treasure trove of romantic images to assist us--the advertisements!, the colognes!, the powders!, the hot towel machines!, the blades!, the chairs!
But sadly, this book chose not to take that side.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wow! Awesome!, June 9, 2005

By	Gus Flaubert (Copenhagen, Denmark) - See all my reviews

Books like this come along once in a generation. You can almost smell the hair tonic as you flip through the pages. The anecdotes are bittersweet and nostalgic and compliment the stunning high-quality imagery beautifully. The old style barbershop may be going the way of the dinosaur, but thanks to this lovely book, they will live on in our memories forever. Thank you for giving us this wonderful treasure.

Gus

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What a great book!, June 7, 2005

By	Daniel M. (Waterloo, Ontario) - See all my reviews

I heard about this book on CBC Radio and it sounded fantastic. I received my copy and the photos are beautiful! They really capture the atmosphere and the details of those traditional barbershops. There are little interview excerpts that really give you the feeling that you're sitting in one of them, overhearing bits of conversation. I sat and read it cover to cover and felt like I had just spent an hour in a barbershop. Very unique!