![]() “An incredibly readable mix of first-person narrative of life in Seoul, rich cultural history, analysis and introspection. “ deep and deeply-felt investigation.” -Jessica DeFino Well-researched and funny, it is Hu’s own vulnerability and keen observations on the endless project of female self-improvement that make each page sparkle.” -Alicia Menendez, MSNBC Anchor and Author of The Likeability Trap ![]() “Like a trip to the beauty counter with your most discerning friend, Flawless deftly redirects us from the individual choices we are bombarded with (so many serums, so little time!) and focuses us instead on the transnational systems that sell consumption as the key to wholeness. Hu’s journalism shines a light on what is broken and provides optimism for what can be instead.” -Eve Rodsky, New York Times bestselling author of Fair Play ![]() Flawless helps us ask hard questions and reclaim our agency in a world that wants to deny us our power. It provides an urgent metaphorical societal mirror and context for why we spend so much of our time in the quixotic pursuit of perfection. “A must read, Flawless is much more than a book about culture’s obsession with youth and beauty. Her ability to lay out a highly rigid and codified standard of beauty in a different culture defamiliarizes our own enough to make its outlines and paradoxes plain.“ - Vox “Hu tracks the social, political, and economic results of a beauty industry big enough to reshape a country. “The host of NPR’s “TED Talks Daily” shines a bright light into the shadowy world of manufactured beauty and endless “self-improvement”…Hu’s study of Korea’s beauty cult is fascinating and disturbing, woven with threads of dark humor and personal experience.” - Kirkus (starred review) One of Vox‘s Best Books of 2023 | One of NPR’s Books of the Day | Required Reading from New York Post | One of Nylon‘s 13 May Books to Add to Your Reading List | One of PureWow’s 14 Books to Read for AAPI Heritage Month | One of W Magazine‘s 14 Books to Dive Into This Summer | One of Betches’ Best Summer Reads of 2023 It raises complicated questions about gender disparity, consumerism, the beauty imperative of an appearance obsessed society, and the undeniable political, economic, and social capital of good looks worldwide. And it points the way toward an alternative vision, one that’s more affirming and inclusive than a beauty culture led by industry. With rich historical context and deep reporting, including hours of interviews with South Korean women, this is a complex, provocative look at the ways hustle culture has reached into the sinews of our bodies. When technology makes it easy to quantify and optimize ourselves-from banishing blemishes, to whittling our waistlines, even to shaving down our jaws-where do we draw the line? What are the dangers for a society where a flawless face and body are promoted and possible? What are the real financial, physical, and emotional costs of beauty work in a culture that valorizes endless self-improvement and codes it as empowerment? Today it’s worth $10 billion and is only getting bigger as it rides the Hallyu wave around the globe.Īnd fun as self-care consumerism may be, Elise turns her veteran eye to the darker questions lurking beneath the surface of this story. In the four years Elise spent in Seoul as NPR’s bureau chief, the global K-beauty industry quadrupled. Its skincare and makeup products-creams packaged to look like milkshakes or pandas, and snail mucus face masks, to name a few-work together to fascinate us, champion consumerism, and invite us to indulge. K-beauty has captured imaginations worldwide by promising a kind of mesmerizing perfection. An audacious journalistic exploration of the present and future of beauty through the lens of South Korea’s booming “K-beauty” industry and the culture it promotes, by Elise Hu, NPR host-at-large and the host of TED Talks Daily
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