Wednesday, November 10, 2010

November Staff Picks


Cory’s pick
The Body Project
By Joan Brumberg
HQ 798 B724 1998


“The Body is a proxy for the self.” – Joan Jacobs Brumberg

With every generation, body image issues in girls emerge at younger and younger ages. This book examines that trend using diaries from girls in the 19th century, when beauty was only small piece of one’s existence, not the defining factor. Brumberg shows how society’s influence has shifted gears; in embracing individualism over conformity, Western culture created a vacuum where one’s external appearance is a much bigger factor in how we value ourselves and one another. Think of how much creative energy has been wasted on primping that could have gone toward meaningful pursuits!

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