Nonfiction review: THE POWER OF STYLE: HOW FASHION AND BEAUTY ARE BEING USED TO RECLAIM CULTURES

One of the best parts for me of judging nonfiction finalists for the Cybils Award is being 'forced' to read books like this, The Power of Style: How Fashion and Beauty are Being Used to Reclaim Cultures by Christian Allare. In the past I may have a read a chapter or two of such a book most often if I was searching for some specific information. But now I reading these nonfiction books looking not only for content but also for good writing and a pleasant presentation of the information.

This colorful book features more than 30 designers, models, and entrepreneurs who are changing the way we look at fashion and beauty. The book is a celebration of inclusivity, creativity, and cultural activism. It is full of colorful photographs of aspects of clothing, hair, footwear, make-up and cosplay fashion. The author, Christian Allare is an Ojibwe writer who grew up on a reservation in Ontario, Canada and writes for Vogue magazine as a fashion and style reporter.

What I liked abut the book:

• The book is divided up according to topics: his own First Nation culture's fashion sense with ribbons and design; Black hair styles; cosplay fashions and plus-size models; hijabs and Muslim-styles making a fashion statement; men in heels; and make-up styles including henna designs.
• Since the book is stuffed full of colorful photographs, even teens who don't like to read will be attracted to the book.
  

What I didn't like about the book:

• The subtitle and the content don't always match. The word "culture" implies to be the customs, arts, social institutions, and achievements of a particular nation, people, or other social groups. I had a hard time thinking of men wearing heels or a person dressing in cosplay as culture. Those are styles and preferences, but culture? Maybe I am wrong.
• The book seemed to be a very "now" book that will get dated very quickly making it less attractive as a library book purchase.
• There was no reference material or bibliography for further reading thought there was a helpful table of contents. 

-Anne