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Rating: 
Summary: Calling All Mammals
Review: I came to this book with an interest in Diane Simon's fantastic on-the-scene reporting--face to face with the founder of Hair Club for Men, side by side with cross-dressers having their hair removed, in the company of wigmakers, hair braiders, hair sellers, high-end stylists and working-class beauticians. Simon introduces her readers to a fabulous array of intriguing characters bound by their concern with hair--too much or too little, too curly or too straight. If the book were just that--a piece of reportage--it'd be worth the cover price for Simon's humor and fine style alone. But what makes this book remarkable, and deserving of five stars, is Simon's ability to bring the insights of cultural theory to bear without ever losing hold of the attention of even a casual reader. She's an empathetic writer, and a smart one. You may not think you have anything to learn from a white man getting hair implants or a black woman getting hair extensions or a drag queen getting her facial hair literally shocked off, but in Simon's hands each of these characters become mirrors for everyday anxieties, hopes, and history. This isn't just a book about wacky hair--it's about race and gender in America, a story that cuts close to core questions about identity and appearence. As it finds the readership it deserves, it may well turn out to be one of the really important books of the year, pointing toward a new way of asking questions about how we live that's funny as well as deeply perceptive.
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