Ling Ling Huang
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Natural Beauty -- Ling Ling Huang, Hardcover
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Sly, surprising, and razor-sharp, Natural Beauty follows a young musician into an elite, beauty-obsessed world where perfection comes at a staggering cost.
Our narrator produces a sound from the piano no one else at the Conservatory can. She employs a technique she learned from her parents--also talented musicians--who fled China in the wake of the Cultural Revolution. But when an accident leaves her parents debilitated, she abandons her future for a job at a high-end beauty and wellness store in New York City. Holistik is known for its remarkable products and procedures--from remoras that suck out cheap Botox to eyelash extensions made of spider silk--and her new job affords her entry into a world of privilege and gives her a long-awaited sense of belonging. She becomes transfixed by Helen, the niece of Holistik's charismatic owner, and the two strike up a friendship that hazily veers into more. All the while, our narrator is plied with products that slim her thighs, smooth her skin, and lighten her hair. But beneath these creams and tinctures lies something sinister. A piercing, darkly funny debut, Natural Beauty explores questions of consumerism, self-worth, race, and identity--and leaves readers with a shocking and unsettling truth.
Author: Ling Ling Huang
Publisher: Dutton
Published: 04/04/2023
Pages: 272
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 0.82lbs
Size: 8.52h x 5.81w x 0.98d
ISBN: 9780593472927
Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 02/15/2023
Publishers Weekly 02/20/2023
Booklist 03/15/2023 pg. 32
Our narrator produces a sound from the piano no one else at the Conservatory can. She employs a technique she learned from her parents--also talented musicians--who fled China in the wake of the Cultural Revolution. But when an accident leaves her parents debilitated, she abandons her future for a job at a high-end beauty and wellness store in New York City. Holistik is known for its remarkable products and procedures--from remoras that suck out cheap Botox to eyelash extensions made of spider silk--and her new job affords her entry into a world of privilege and gives her a long-awaited sense of belonging. She becomes transfixed by Helen, the niece of Holistik's charismatic owner, and the two strike up a friendship that hazily veers into more. All the while, our narrator is plied with products that slim her thighs, smooth her skin, and lighten her hair. But beneath these creams and tinctures lies something sinister. A piercing, darkly funny debut, Natural Beauty explores questions of consumerism, self-worth, race, and identity--and leaves readers with a shocking and unsettling truth.
Author: Ling Ling Huang
Publisher: Dutton
Published: 04/04/2023
Pages: 272
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 0.82lbs
Size: 8.52h x 5.81w x 0.98d
ISBN: 9780593472927
Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 02/15/2023
Publishers Weekly 02/20/2023
Booklist 03/15/2023 pg. 32
About the Author
Ling Ling Huang is a writer and violinist. She plays with several ensembles, including the Oregon Symphony, Grand Teton Music Festival Orchestra, ProMusica, Chamber Orchestra, and the Experiential Orchestra, with whom she won a Grammy Award in 2021. Natural Beauty is her first novel.
Product Tags:
Asian American, Dutton, Fiction, Fiction - General, Hardcover, Horror, Ling Ling Huang, New York (N.Y.), Satire
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