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The House of Beauty: Lessons From the Image Industry
The much-anticipated debut from a beauty business insider cracks open an industry designed to capitalize on our desires and reimagines a more-just future.
With the intellectual rigor of Maggie Nelson, the cultural agility of Jia Tolentino, and the sensitivity of bell hooks, Arabelle Sicardi brings a singular voice—poetic, candid, incisive—to the complexities of the beauty industry. Weaving sharp analysis and vivid storytelling, Sicardi explores how beauty myths are crafted, sold, and weaponized, from corporate boardrooms to local salons. Delving into such issues as the exploitation of refugee labor in nail salons, the use of fragrance in fascist propaganda, and the hidden connections between power and profit, Sicardi challenges readers to confront the industry’s costs—both personal and societal—and reconsider beauty as more than a product of consumption. Instead, they invite a vision of beauty rooted in connection and self-care, one that transcends industry-driven ideals. The House of Beauty is both an exposé and a cultural reckoning, offering insight into beauty’s true impact and the untold stories behind its illusions.
With the intellectual rigor of Maggie Nelson, the cultural agility of Jia Tolentino, and the sensitivity of bell hooks, Arabelle Sicardi brings a singular voice—poetic, candid, incisive—to the complexities of the beauty industry. Weaving sharp analysis and vivid storytelling, Sicardi explores how beauty myths are crafted, sold, and weaponized, from corporate boardrooms to local salons. Delving into such issues as the exploitation of refugee labor in nail salons, the use of fragrance in fascist propaganda, and the hidden connections between power and profit, Sicardi challenges readers to confront the industry’s costs—both personal and societal—and reconsider beauty as more than a product of consumption. Instead, they invite a vision of beauty rooted in connection and self-care, one that transcends industry-driven ideals. The House of Beauty is both an exposé and a cultural reckoning, offering insight into beauty’s true impact and the untold stories behind its illusions.
288 pages, Hardcover
Published October 14, 2025
58 people are currently reading
5942 people want to read
About the author
Arabelle Sicardi
5 books421 followersArabelle Sicardi is a Taiwanese American writer exploring beauty, care, and crisis. They’ve written for Allure, Teen Vogue, and the Cut; run the scent collective Perfumed Pages; and founded the Museum of Nails Foundation. They split their time between Los Angeles, California, and New York City.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
November 23, 2025
*Read Through NetGalley*
I don’t usually go for nonfiction, but I kept seeing this book everywhere, so I finally gave it a shot—and honestly, it was way more interesting than I expected. The first section was especially fun, set up like a choose-your-own-adventure while diving into the darker side of the beauty industry. It was such a creative way to share info that could’ve easily felt boring or too textbook-y.
After that, the book switches gears and takes a deeper look into the most famous perfume, hair extensions, and the nail industry. Those parts were more straightforward, kind of history-focused, with some social and political commentary mixed in. Still interesting, just not as unique or playful as the beginning.
The last sections focused a lot on COVID, and that’s where it kind of lost me. I get why it was included, but it felt a little out of place with the rest of the book. Instead of exploring how beauty brands adapted or maybe the shady stuff they did to stay afloat, it mostly came off as venting about the pandemic, which didn’t really match the rest of the vibe.
Overall, I liked it and learned a lot, but I wish the sections flowed together a bit better and kept the same tone throughout. Still worth checking out if you’re curious about the beauty industry, just expect a few rough transitions. I’d give it around 3.5 stars.
I don’t usually go for nonfiction, but I kept seeing this book everywhere, so I finally gave it a shot—and honestly, it was way more interesting than I expected. The first section was especially fun, set up like a choose-your-own-adventure while diving into the darker side of the beauty industry. It was such a creative way to share info that could’ve easily felt boring or too textbook-y.
After that, the book switches gears and takes a deeper look into the most famous perfume, hair extensions, and the nail industry. Those parts were more straightforward, kind of history-focused, with some social and political commentary mixed in. Still interesting, just not as unique or playful as the beginning.
The last sections focused a lot on COVID, and that’s where it kind of lost me. I get why it was included, but it felt a little out of place with the rest of the book. Instead of exploring how beauty brands adapted or maybe the shady stuff they did to stay afloat, it mostly came off as venting about the pandemic, which didn’t really match the rest of the vibe.
Overall, I liked it and learned a lot, but I wish the sections flowed together a bit better and kept the same tone throughout. Still worth checking out if you’re curious about the beauty industry, just expect a few rough transitions. I’d give it around 3.5 stars.
August 5, 2025
I’ve followed Arabelle Sicardi parasocially for over a decade so it’s been incredible getting to read an advanced copy of the book they’ve been working on for so long. This is a book about how the beauty industry has blood on its hands via neocolonialism, capitalism, white supremacy, and the climate emergency. There are personal anecdotes throughout that outline the author’s connection to beauty over the years as they struggle to make sense of the cruelty inherent to its commodification.
I had a familiarity with some of these topics going into it, Chanel as a nazi spy, mica extraction via child labor, palm oil deforestation, but Sicardi manages to add an additional depth and show things in a new light. Their journalism is incredibly in depth and I loved the way each chapter jumped between seemingly unconnected threads and wove them together under a single uniting topic. By the end, Sicardi is aware of the futility of trying to tie everything up into a tidy bow or simple platitude yet the overarching message isn’t as hopeless as you’d expect.
Pairs well with The Membranes which I recently read, loads of thematic similarities!
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the eARC.
I had a familiarity with some of these topics going into it, Chanel as a nazi spy, mica extraction via child labor, palm oil deforestation, but Sicardi manages to add an additional depth and show things in a new light. Their journalism is incredibly in depth and I loved the way each chapter jumped between seemingly unconnected threads and wove them together under a single uniting topic. By the end, Sicardi is aware of the futility of trying to tie everything up into a tidy bow or simple platitude yet the overarching message isn’t as hopeless as you’d expect.
Pairs well with The Membranes which I recently read, loads of thematic similarities!
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the eARC.
November 20, 2025
This was a pleasant surprise. I really didn’t know what to expect when I started this book. The book jacket states, “how beauty myths are crafted, sold and weaponized” and I was immediately intrigued. This is absolutely the beauty industry. We all know it, but most of us, (myself included) still love so many things in the beauty industry, unfortunately contributing to things never changing.
I loved the obvious research that the author did. Especially research that is clearly not following the positive narrative corporations prefer. Finding a wealth of knowledge regarding Coco Chanel’s Nazi ties is not an easy task. Shining light on the illegal and devastating practices related to mining, child labor and human trafficking is already hard, but shining a light on to it’s clear ties to the beauty industry is shocking. The author did this. She did amazing research and presented it heavily based on facts.
The narrator was listed as the author, Arabelle Sicardi. My hiccup was when I started listening at “normal” speed. I was born and raised in Southern California and her reading was very “California.” Very valley girl and it was off-putting. Once I increased the speed, it was not as noticeable, so I enjoyed the book. This likely isn’t a concern for anyone else, but having been born and raised around that type of “accent” was noticeable and bothersome to me. On a positive, she knows her work and her own writing, so in the end I do think it was a good call that she did the narration.
I would absolutely recommend this book. It was put together with clear thought and had tremendous history with a wealth of information. Thank you NetGalley for the read. This book did not disappoint.
I loved the obvious research that the author did. Especially research that is clearly not following the positive narrative corporations prefer. Finding a wealth of knowledge regarding Coco Chanel’s Nazi ties is not an easy task. Shining light on the illegal and devastating practices related to mining, child labor and human trafficking is already hard, but shining a light on to it’s clear ties to the beauty industry is shocking. The author did this. She did amazing research and presented it heavily based on facts.
The narrator was listed as the author, Arabelle Sicardi. My hiccup was when I started listening at “normal” speed. I was born and raised in Southern California and her reading was very “California.” Very valley girl and it was off-putting. Once I increased the speed, it was not as noticeable, so I enjoyed the book. This likely isn’t a concern for anyone else, but having been born and raised around that type of “accent” was noticeable and bothersome to me. On a positive, she knows her work and her own writing, so in the end I do think it was a good call that she did the narration.
I would absolutely recommend this book. It was put together with clear thought and had tremendous history with a wealth of information. Thank you NetGalley for the read. This book did not disappoint.
December 18, 2025
2.75
The first few chapters were pretty interesting, but the mix of personal musings and facts got a bit muddled over time. I prefer my non-fiction to be fully based in facts, so the personal essay portions weren't really my thing. The prose also seemed a bit clunky and some of the grammatical choices were odd. I'm not a Tumblr prose fan, so if you also are not, beware of the somewhat flowery prose. I would have loved to read more data based chapters, but that's just a preference thing.
The first few chapters were pretty interesting, but the mix of personal musings and facts got a bit muddled over time. I prefer my non-fiction to be fully based in facts, so the personal essay portions weren't really my thing. The prose also seemed a bit clunky and some of the grammatical choices were odd. I'm not a Tumblr prose fan, so if you also are not, beware of the somewhat flowery prose. I would have loved to read more data based chapters, but that's just a preference thing.
September 4, 2025
our vanity isn't worth the world
incredibly difficult to read at times but so necessary. the first chapter is a gut punch and it never really lets up, forcing us to confront so much of the awfulness, past and present, involved in the industry and how our consumption fuels it. I hesitate to criticize the last chapter given the deeply personal and vulnerable nature of it, but it did feel less formed and finished than the rest (a fact which is kind of acknowledged, but still doesn't change the reality of it). I really think this should be considered required reading for anyone who has consumed more than 100 hours of beauty content or spent any amount of money on makeup and skincare.
ARC provided by Netgalley and W. W. Norton & Company
incredibly difficult to read at times but so necessary. the first chapter is a gut punch and it never really lets up, forcing us to confront so much of the awfulness, past and present, involved in the industry and how our consumption fuels it. I hesitate to criticize the last chapter given the deeply personal and vulnerable nature of it, but it did feel less formed and finished than the rest (a fact which is kind of acknowledged, but still doesn't change the reality of it). I really think this should be considered required reading for anyone who has consumed more than 100 hours of beauty content or spent any amount of money on makeup and skincare.
ARC provided by Netgalley and W. W. Norton & Company
Read
October 27, 2025I think I mixed this up with a different book about beauty when I picked it up at the bookstore, and I'm so glad I was confused, because it was so fucking good. It was considerably more scholarly than I expected (complimentary) and yet still totally readable, accessible, and millennial (complimentary). It's depressing as all hell, yet also inspiring and invigorating because it makes you angry and want to be better, and we need that. A very worthwhile read.
December 3, 2025
(3.75)
July 15, 2025
Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.
I have been following Arabelle Sicardi for their work on beauty, cultural critique, and other matters of taste in some form or another since my high school tumblr days. Have been looking forward to this book for several years so getting claws on it was a real treat.
Sicardi is most grabbing as a quasi-scientist/philosopher, their writing is smart bordering on meticulous, and often polemical. In this book "about beauty" Sicardi does not do a clean differentiation between Beauty (the industry with all it's exploitative trappings) and beauty (our heartbeat as humans)— and of course they are not cleanly differentiated, which is convincingly demonstrated. So off the bat it's clear that this is not a "here is the path forward" type of work. Neither does it have a razor edge of timeliness (COVID writing just feels slightly anachronistic at this moment) so it took me a minute to get into the flow of this ARC, appreciate it for what it is.
I most enjoyed the Hair chapter. Korean-owned beauty supply stores (which obviously cannot be separated from the ownership-disenfranchised Black communities in which they are largely located) are a topic of heated discussion but this is the first I encountered the history of them as related to the Cold War/America's jackbooted anti-communism efforts, the social movements of the 70s following the crushing disappointments of the late 60s. That, and the Coco Chanel chapter which was very emotionally vivid. Though the territory has been tread on that topic, Sicardi offers their own take.
Reading this book reminded me of Airplane Mode: An Irreverent History of Travel by Shahnaz Habib, a 2024 half-memoir half-history book which absolutely exploded my brain at first read. I would have eaten up more memoir portions from Sicardi, which were all incisively vulnerable, but we've established I'm a fan. When they started talking about pirates, for example, I jumped a bit in my seat.
The sections on tech and beauty were left fairly open-ended (Sicardi fairly presents it as a frontier even while presenting their trademark historical perspective), definitely a niche the author could go longform on in the future.
I have been following Arabelle Sicardi for their work on beauty, cultural critique, and other matters of taste in some form or another since my high school tumblr days. Have been looking forward to this book for several years so getting claws on it was a real treat.
Sicardi is most grabbing as a quasi-scientist/philosopher, their writing is smart bordering on meticulous, and often polemical. In this book "about beauty" Sicardi does not do a clean differentiation between Beauty (the industry with all it's exploitative trappings) and beauty (our heartbeat as humans)— and of course they are not cleanly differentiated, which is convincingly demonstrated. So off the bat it's clear that this is not a "here is the path forward" type of work. Neither does it have a razor edge of timeliness (COVID writing just feels slightly anachronistic at this moment) so it took me a minute to get into the flow of this ARC, appreciate it for what it is.
I most enjoyed the Hair chapter. Korean-owned beauty supply stores (which obviously cannot be separated from the ownership-disenfranchised Black communities in which they are largely located) are a topic of heated discussion but this is the first I encountered the history of them as related to the Cold War/America's jackbooted anti-communism efforts, the social movements of the 70s following the crushing disappointments of the late 60s. That, and the Coco Chanel chapter which was very emotionally vivid. Though the territory has been tread on that topic, Sicardi offers their own take.
Reading this book reminded me of Airplane Mode: An Irreverent History of Travel by Shahnaz Habib, a 2024 half-memoir half-history book which absolutely exploded my brain at first read. I would have eaten up more memoir portions from Sicardi, which were all incisively vulnerable, but we've established I'm a fan. When they started talking about pirates, for example, I jumped a bit in my seat.
The sections on tech and beauty were left fairly open-ended (Sicardi fairly presents it as a frontier even while presenting their trademark historical perspective), definitely a niche the author could go longform on in the future.
September 9, 2025
This is a stunning, truly gorgeously written book that examines the ethics of the beauty industry. It is well researched, with a broad scope, yet it also feels deeply personal. The essays vary in style. A few stand out for being quite different, such as the opening piece written in a “choose your own adventure” format that explores source materials, labor, consumers, and products. The essay on Chanel No. 5 is so expansive and rich that it could have been a book in itself. Many of the other essays begin as thoughtful treatises on topics like hair, nails, or body hacking, and then evolve into beautiful, moving, and personal manifestos.
This book also made me reflect on my own history with beauty. When I was around thirteen, I became obsessed with it. This was in the late '90s, and I spent time on old-school forums (similar to subreddits today) and on a site called MakeupAlley. As the author notes, beauty products were affordable luxuries, and for me they were a way to experiment with identity. I bought a lot of products, though I rarely used them. At that time, many of the brands that are now part of Estee Lauder and other conglomerates were still independent and cool. As I grew older, my beauty routine settled into something fairly standard, but I remained drawn to beautiful packaging and clever advertising. Later, I would also read beauty features on news blogs, which would pull me in again.
More recently, I began reading Jessica DeFino’s work, which helped me step back and rethink my relationship with beauty. This book goes even further. It pushes me away from the idea that consuming beauty products is either a necessity or a solution to my problems.
As I have aged, I have developed melasma, a hormone-related hyperpigmentation above my lip. It is subtle but can look like a mustache, and at times it has made me self-conscious. For my skin type, treatments are just as likely to worsen it as they are to lighten it. Reading this book gave me perspective. It reminded me that there is no need to treat the melasma. I will never love it, but it is part of being human.
Ultimately, this book does not shame beauty consumers like myself; it’s an invitation to rethink how we engage with it, and to find dignity outside of consumption.
Thanks to W.W. Norton and NetGalley for access to this ARC.
This book also made me reflect on my own history with beauty. When I was around thirteen, I became obsessed with it. This was in the late '90s, and I spent time on old-school forums (similar to subreddits today) and on a site called MakeupAlley. As the author notes, beauty products were affordable luxuries, and for me they were a way to experiment with identity. I bought a lot of products, though I rarely used them. At that time, many of the brands that are now part of Estee Lauder and other conglomerates were still independent and cool. As I grew older, my beauty routine settled into something fairly standard, but I remained drawn to beautiful packaging and clever advertising. Later, I would also read beauty features on news blogs, which would pull me in again.
More recently, I began reading Jessica DeFino’s work, which helped me step back and rethink my relationship with beauty. This book goes even further. It pushes me away from the idea that consuming beauty products is either a necessity or a solution to my problems.
As I have aged, I have developed melasma, a hormone-related hyperpigmentation above my lip. It is subtle but can look like a mustache, and at times it has made me self-conscious. For my skin type, treatments are just as likely to worsen it as they are to lighten it. Reading this book gave me perspective. It reminded me that there is no need to treat the melasma. I will never love it, but it is part of being human.
Ultimately, this book does not shame beauty consumers like myself; it’s an invitation to rethink how we engage with it, and to find dignity outside of consumption.
Thanks to W.W. Norton and NetGalley for access to this ARC.
Read
December 8, 2025- i thought the choose adventure first chapter was an effective experiment with form, and would be hard to experience through ebook or audiobook, so you kind of have to have the physical book. (though lol i put the book down for a while because i thought the entire thing was going to be in this form, but its not !!)
- i enjoyed that each chapter talked about a different aspect of the industry, i learnt a lot. the chapters on chanel, hair, and nails especially stood out to me.
- HOWEVER, it was all too brief too me. i expected a deeper dive into each thing, including many of the tidbits in the first chapter that was (for obvious reasons) even more brief.
- i also thought that it felt a bit disjointed, like each chapter was a discrete essay, which they were, and i dont mind because i LIKE essay collections, but the way that it kind of blended into memoir especially in the last chapter, i didn't exactly understand why she chose these specific topics and examples, like how did she choose what to feature and what not to? each chapter wasn't a survey of a global history (or even the history of one specific geography/population, like chanel was in france, the hair chapter centered around the US/south korea), or a comprehensive look at the topic as a whole, it explained just one specific context (e.g., the hair chapter primarily only on the wig industry). i dont know! i just didn't fully understand it as a cohesive book.
- i did see her speak about this book at a live event, where she talked through some of the books that influenced her writing, which was really interesting. (and sometimes i see her posts on substack!)
- 3 stars
- i enjoyed that each chapter talked about a different aspect of the industry, i learnt a lot. the chapters on chanel, hair, and nails especially stood out to me.
- HOWEVER, it was all too brief too me. i expected a deeper dive into each thing, including many of the tidbits in the first chapter that was (for obvious reasons) even more brief.
- i also thought that it felt a bit disjointed, like each chapter was a discrete essay, which they were, and i dont mind because i LIKE essay collections, but the way that it kind of blended into memoir especially in the last chapter, i didn't exactly understand why she chose these specific topics and examples, like how did she choose what to feature and what not to? each chapter wasn't a survey of a global history (or even the history of one specific geography/population, like chanel was in france, the hair chapter centered around the US/south korea), or a comprehensive look at the topic as a whole, it explained just one specific context (e.g., the hair chapter primarily only on the wig industry). i dont know! i just didn't fully understand it as a cohesive book.
- i did see her speak about this book at a live event, where she talked through some of the books that influenced her writing, which was really interesting. (and sometimes i see her posts on substack!)
- 3 stars
Read
November 18, 2025I've been following Arabelle Sicardi for years (since Tumblr!), so I was so excited to finally get my hands on their debut. I think about their "Most Important Ugly" exhibition from 2013(?) a lot, and love that those themes get explored in this work (beauty is terror/a monster/power to be wielded).
My fave essays (or at least ones that will stick with me) were:
-"Chose Your Own Disaster": made me think about how the ingredients in the makeup I love to play with get sourced and the perils faced by these laborers. I also thought formatting this essay as a choose your own adventure story was a really apt way to depict the complex web of the sourcing, creation, and marketing of beauty products
-"Near Death is the Father of Beauty": I just watched an Ordinary Things video on Bryan Johnson and others that want to conquer death through taking meticulous biometric measurements and using this info for biohacking, and one of the ideas that Josh Otten brings up in this video is that these folks end up centering death in their life by trying to avoid it. So that was echoing in my head when I was reading this essay. Loved the tension between the cyborgs/biohackers who do this for survival (physical and mental) and to make the most of their life and those who are frightened by mortality.
-"The House of Beauty is Burning": Very powerful essay where you get to see Sicardi reckon with their beliefs about beauty in the wake of personal disaster and recommit to their beliefs and the work that it takes.
My fave essays (or at least ones that will stick with me) were:
-"Chose Your Own Disaster": made me think about how the ingredients in the makeup I love to play with get sourced and the perils faced by these laborers. I also thought formatting this essay as a choose your own adventure story was a really apt way to depict the complex web of the sourcing, creation, and marketing of beauty products
-"Near Death is the Father of Beauty": I just watched an Ordinary Things video on Bryan Johnson and others that want to conquer death through taking meticulous biometric measurements and using this info for biohacking, and one of the ideas that Josh Otten brings up in this video is that these folks end up centering death in their life by trying to avoid it. So that was echoing in my head when I was reading this essay. Loved the tension between the cyborgs/biohackers who do this for survival (physical and mental) and to make the most of their life and those who are frightened by mortality.
-"The House of Beauty is Burning": Very powerful essay where you get to see Sicardi reckon with their beliefs about beauty in the wake of personal disaster and recommit to their beliefs and the work that it takes.
December 9, 2025
4/5 stars for the book, 3.5/5 for the narration
The House of Beauty teaches its readers the horrors of the beauty industry, from working conditions, sourcing, creating, large companies starts, to the dangers that lie on our skin. It was such an intriguing and interested read. I feel I am more able to make a conscious effort to help our planet, save my skin and endocrine system from toxins, and make sure my money is supporting companies that are for the greater good. Arabelle Sicardi is very knowledgeable and I really appreciate how she was able to put very technical terms into standard English for the general population to easier digest!
Most of the book is set up in textbook like chapters, but the first section of the book is a really unique choose your own adventure and I really enjoyed that!
Unfortunately, I took off a half star for the choose your own adventure portion of the book, you cannot easily navigate it and I think it is due to it being an ALC and not necessarily ready for publication. Secondly, I took off one full star due to the dryness and blandness of the narration. Sicardi did decide to narrate her own book, but I found myself becoming easily distracted, thankfully I also had the ARC for I could follow along!
Thank you to Netgalley and High Bridge Audio, and W.W Norton & Company for the opportunity to listen to this ALC and read the ARC in exchange for an honest review!
The House of Beauty teaches its readers the horrors of the beauty industry, from working conditions, sourcing, creating, large companies starts, to the dangers that lie on our skin. It was such an intriguing and interested read. I feel I am more able to make a conscious effort to help our planet, save my skin and endocrine system from toxins, and make sure my money is supporting companies that are for the greater good. Arabelle Sicardi is very knowledgeable and I really appreciate how she was able to put very technical terms into standard English for the general population to easier digest!
Most of the book is set up in textbook like chapters, but the first section of the book is a really unique choose your own adventure and I really enjoyed that!
Unfortunately, I took off a half star for the choose your own adventure portion of the book, you cannot easily navigate it and I think it is due to it being an ALC and not necessarily ready for publication. Secondly, I took off one full star due to the dryness and blandness of the narration. Sicardi did decide to narrate her own book, but I found myself becoming easily distracted, thankfully I also had the ARC for I could follow along!
Thank you to Netgalley and High Bridge Audio, and W.W Norton & Company for the opportunity to listen to this ALC and read the ARC in exchange for an honest review!
December 24, 2025
i used to follow arabelle on tumblr back in the day, and was always enthralled by their writing style and interested in their rants and raves about the beauty industry, a subject in which i've dabbled but never been heavily interested in and thus felt like an outsider in its realm, mostly due to my incongruous fit within gender constructs (and later on my resentment toward its modern industrial purpose of capitalizing on people's insecurities.)
the author doesn't shy away from these viewpoints at all, but attributes their fascination with beauty to its expansiveness, which i never considered in such a way: beauty not just as a tool of white supremacy with a bloody history, but as queerness, celebration, art, survival, reclamation. all of these things can be true – it's why it has always had a chokehold on us.
i usually listen to nonfiction as audiobooks, but this is one i'd recommend reading physically. flipping back and forth in the "choose your own adventure" introduction made diving into this such a fun experience. the first time i'd ever been gripped by a nonfiction book! 🤯🤯🤯
the author doesn't shy away from these viewpoints at all, but attributes their fascination with beauty to its expansiveness, which i never considered in such a way: beauty not just as a tool of white supremacy with a bloody history, but as queerness, celebration, art, survival, reclamation. all of these things can be true – it's why it has always had a chokehold on us.
i usually listen to nonfiction as audiobooks, but this is one i'd recommend reading physically. flipping back and forth in the "choose your own adventure" introduction made diving into this such a fun experience. the first time i'd ever been gripped by a nonfiction book! 🤯🤯🤯
October 27, 2025
Thank you to W. W. Norton & Company and NetGalley for the ARC!
I really had to take my time with this one, this book spoke directly to my heart. I have been so into beauty for so long I knew a lot of the information in this book, but there was an equal amount that I didn't know about, and I love and appreciate the actionable advice toward the end of the book.
I'll recommend the YouTube series Shady by Lexy Lebsack on Refinery29's channel if people liked the first part of the book, it's very much in the same vein and, unfortunately, not much has changed in the 7-8 years since that series was published.
If you engage with the beauty space, I think it's important to know about the dark side of the industry and this is a good book to recommend for the seedier side of beauty.
If you want to know about the children mining for mica in life threatening conditions, the impact of the beauty industry on climate change, Coco Chanel dating Nazi's, and so much more, you should read this book.
I really had to take my time with this one, this book spoke directly to my heart. I have been so into beauty for so long I knew a lot of the information in this book, but there was an equal amount that I didn't know about, and I love and appreciate the actionable advice toward the end of the book.
I'll recommend the YouTube series Shady by Lexy Lebsack on Refinery29's channel if people liked the first part of the book, it's very much in the same vein and, unfortunately, not much has changed in the 7-8 years since that series was published.
If you engage with the beauty space, I think it's important to know about the dark side of the industry and this is a good book to recommend for the seedier side of beauty.
If you want to know about the children mining for mica in life threatening conditions, the impact of the beauty industry on climate change, Coco Chanel dating Nazi's, and so much more, you should read this book.
June 6, 2025
4.5 stars
The House of Beauty is a brilliant and blistering debut that demands we rethink everything we’ve been sold about beauty— who sets the standards, who reaps the benefits, and who bears the cost. Arabelle Sicardi brings a rare blend of lyricism and clarity to this cultural reckoning, drawing on feminist theory, personal narrative, and deep industry insight. From the exploitation baked into our daily rituals to the way beauty regimes uphold systems of power, Sicardi names what so often goes unspoken. Yet, amid the critique, there is care—a radical reimagining of beauty as something communal, political, and tender. This is not a book of easy answers, but one of necessary questions.
Many thanks to NetGalley and W. W. Norton & Company for providing an eARC of The House of Beauty prior to its publication.
The House of Beauty is a brilliant and blistering debut that demands we rethink everything we’ve been sold about beauty— who sets the standards, who reaps the benefits, and who bears the cost. Arabelle Sicardi brings a rare blend of lyricism and clarity to this cultural reckoning, drawing on feminist theory, personal narrative, and deep industry insight. From the exploitation baked into our daily rituals to the way beauty regimes uphold systems of power, Sicardi names what so often goes unspoken. Yet, amid the critique, there is care—a radical reimagining of beauty as something communal, political, and tender. This is not a book of easy answers, but one of necessary questions.
Many thanks to NetGalley and W. W. Norton & Company for providing an eARC of The House of Beauty prior to its publication.
November 30, 2025
" This book is a journey through the beauty industry from history into the present, but it is also a handbook for how we can navigate toward and cocreate a better future "
with the slight exception of the first rather muddled chapter ( or perhaps I might be too old to create my own journey/ adventure) this is a splendid book spanning the past present and hopefully future of the beauty industry by someone brave enough to have lost their job for calling out those who have profited from it.
Arabelle Sicardi has given us a well written treatise with positive examples as well as negative responses and results and although I don't particularly participate in most of the beauty industry rituals I learned a great deal. I also loved the lists in the back and the sources cited. This is an author to watch out for. Highly Recommended 5/5
with the slight exception of the first rather muddled chapter ( or perhaps I might be too old to create my own journey/ adventure) this is a splendid book spanning the past present and hopefully future of the beauty industry by someone brave enough to have lost their job for calling out those who have profited from it.
Arabelle Sicardi has given us a well written treatise with positive examples as well as negative responses and results and although I don't particularly participate in most of the beauty industry rituals I learned a great deal. I also loved the lists in the back and the sources cited. This is an author to watch out for. Highly Recommended 5/5
December 17, 2025
[4.25 STARS]
Would you like to read a deeply depressing book about the billion-dollar beauty industry? Well, do I have a book for you.
I’ve read plenty about the dark side of beauty, wellness and self-care, so I expected The House of Beauty to rehash familiar talking points. Instead, I learned far more than anticipated.
Arabelle Sicardi examines every corner of the industry — from life-extension technology and transhumanism to exploitative ingredient harvesting, child labor, and beauty’s major role in pollution and the climate crisis. And what does “clean” beauty even mean, anyway?
The House of Beauty weaves sharp, well-researched exposés with personal reflection (trigger warning: mentions of a suicide attempt), making it both unsettling and illuminating.
Thank you to #NetGalley and Highbridge Audio for an advanced audiobook copy of #TheHouseOfBeauty.
Would you like to read a deeply depressing book about the billion-dollar beauty industry? Well, do I have a book for you.
I’ve read plenty about the dark side of beauty, wellness and self-care, so I expected The House of Beauty to rehash familiar talking points. Instead, I learned far more than anticipated.
Arabelle Sicardi examines every corner of the industry — from life-extension technology and transhumanism to exploitative ingredient harvesting, child labor, and beauty’s major role in pollution and the climate crisis. And what does “clean” beauty even mean, anyway?
The House of Beauty weaves sharp, well-researched exposés with personal reflection (trigger warning: mentions of a suicide attempt), making it both unsettling and illuminating.
Thank you to #NetGalley and Highbridge Audio for an advanced audiobook copy of #TheHouseOfBeauty.
December 12, 2025
CONTENT WARNING FOR THIS BOOK AND THIS REVIEW: mention of suicide attempt
There is a very jarring, horrifying moment in this book where the author goes from talking about longevity conferences in one paragraph to talking about her father shooting himself in literally the next paragraph without any kind of transition or warning. She then proceeds to mention this attempted suicide several times in the next few pages. There is no point in such repeated mentions in a book that is ostensibly about beauty, but I guess I'm not sure what I expected from an author that spends 20% of the book telling us how Coco Chanel profited off spying for the Nazis, and then says she felt awe and wonder when visiting the hotel room Chanel lived in.
There is a very jarring, horrifying moment in this book where the author goes from talking about longevity conferences in one paragraph to talking about her father shooting himself in literally the next paragraph without any kind of transition or warning. She then proceeds to mention this attempted suicide several times in the next few pages. There is no point in such repeated mentions in a book that is ostensibly about beauty, but I guess I'm not sure what I expected from an author that spends 20% of the book telling us how Coco Chanel profited off spying for the Nazis, and then says she felt awe and wonder when visiting the hotel room Chanel lived in.
November 25, 2025
#thehouseofbeauty was not at all what I expected, but it was even better. I learned a lot and it was filled with moments for deeply important self reflection, while I also felt so connected to Arabelle Sicardi throughout. Though the book made me consider what I took away from my middle school days squirreled away in the aisles of Borders with beauty magazines, you don’t need to share that interest to learn something from these essays. They’re all incredibly well researched and their varying structures make for an engaging listen read by the author.
November 30, 2025
The House of Beauty is an excoriating look at the beauty industry by one of its former, now repentant, proponents, Arabella Sicardi. A former beauty editor (BuzzFeed?) and writer, Sicardi has turned their journalist’s eye to expose the problems created by the beauty industry. The mental problems, the environmental problems, the economic problems. It’s an interesting and far-ranging book that starts with mining mica in caves for pennies a day and ends with a more equitable solution for nail stylists. It gets a bit dry in the middle, so 3.5 rounded up. The audiobook is well narrated.
My thanks to the author, publisher, @HighbridgeAudio, and #NetGalley for early access to the audiobook of #TheHouseofBeauty for review purposes. Publication date: 2 December 2025.
My thanks to the author, publisher, @HighbridgeAudio, and #NetGalley for early access to the audiobook of #TheHouseofBeauty for review purposes. Publication date: 2 December 2025.
December 19, 2025
This book is not truly a history of the beauty industry (nor does it claim to be). It is a collection of essays that demonstrate the different ways in which the beauty industry has contributed to slow racial, economic, and environmental violence. Sicardi tactfully demonstrates that beauty itself - apart from the industry bastardized by capitalism and colonialism - can be a key to communal and individual healing.
October 27, 2025
I love how the perspective goes from individual to global and back to personal, especially with the empire of hair chapter. I found the choose your own disaster very unique and enjoyed learning some of the history of the beauty industry. Though important to her narrative, I found a few chapters difficult to get through because they felt more redundant.
December 11, 2025
This book was a genuine surprise for me. I don’t typically read nonfiction about beauty or the industry surrounding it, but I’ve been trying to expand my reading habits and the description intrigued me enough to give it a chance. Once I started reading, I couldn’t look away. Sicardi explores how beauty shapes our place in society, how early we’re taught that being “pretty” equals being worthy, and how appearance becomes currency whether it’s hair, skin, makeup, or the pressure to meet ever-shifting standards.
Sicardi also exposes the harsh realities behind the products we use every day: the child labor, the environmental damage, and the blatant prioritization of profit over people. The lack of care for human life in pursuit of the next dollar is enraging. It’s shocking, upsetting, and deeply eye-opening.
There’s truly so much wrapped into this book that it’s hard to capture everything in a single review. What I can say is that I highly recommend it. Some of the truths were things I already knew, but hearing them from Sicardi’s perspective made them hit with new weight. I ended up reading the entire book in one day.
The book also confronts the parts of the beauty world we rarely think about:
Is makeup really “clean aesthetic,” or is that just branding?
What does makeup have to do with the planet?
What does it actually cost environmentally and ethically to produce “clean” beauty?
And why is the gas and petroleum industry so deeply connected to beauty products?
These are the kinds of questions Sicardi tackles head-on, answering them with research that is both shocking and deeply informative.
The House of Beauty is an exposé, a cultural reckoning, and a deeply researched reminder that beauty is never just beauty its power, labor, history, and humanity. And it’s absolutely worth the read.
Thank you NetGalley and RBmedia for the book in exchange for my honest review.
Sicardi also exposes the harsh realities behind the products we use every day: the child labor, the environmental damage, and the blatant prioritization of profit over people. The lack of care for human life in pursuit of the next dollar is enraging. It’s shocking, upsetting, and deeply eye-opening.
There’s truly so much wrapped into this book that it’s hard to capture everything in a single review. What I can say is that I highly recommend it. Some of the truths were things I already knew, but hearing them from Sicardi’s perspective made them hit with new weight. I ended up reading the entire book in one day.
The book also confronts the parts of the beauty world we rarely think about:
Is makeup really “clean aesthetic,” or is that just branding?
What does makeup have to do with the planet?
What does it actually cost environmentally and ethically to produce “clean” beauty?
And why is the gas and petroleum industry so deeply connected to beauty products?
These are the kinds of questions Sicardi tackles head-on, answering them with research that is both shocking and deeply informative.
The House of Beauty is an exposé, a cultural reckoning, and a deeply researched reminder that beauty is never just beauty its power, labor, history, and humanity. And it’s absolutely worth the read.
Thank you NetGalley and RBmedia for the book in exchange for my honest review.
July 27, 2025
snagged an advance proof of this and I like jia tolentino so this was a no brainer. part 1 was much more experimental than the avg literary non-fiction and kinda reminded me of Olivia Kan Sperling kinda vibes. anyway, this book is cool, hope many people read it.
November 26, 2025
10+ years ago, I bought an exfoliating cleanser because Arabelle Sicardi described its action on dead skin as producing "ribbons of filth"
now I have read this book and am buying into actionable small steps for community building and finding beauty through ways I had but previously considered
now I have read this book and am buying into actionable small steps for community building and finding beauty through ways I had but previously considered
September 29, 2025
Amazing Book Cover and amazing journey! Interesting, intriguing, and informative! Enjoyed reading!!
Read
November 4, 2025DNF 13%
Was so genuinely excited for this book but it's not easy to read. Chapters don't flow into each other.
Was so genuinely excited for this book but it's not easy to read. Chapters don't flow into each other.
December 9, 2025
SO much research here and absolutely should go to the top of a TBR if you too use beauty products
December 10, 2025
I went into this blind and was not expecting it to devastate me. Reading this, like beauty, is care.
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