From acclaimed novelist and cultural historian Ruth Brandon comes a captivating dual biography. Ugly Beauty is about the legendary founders of the cosmetics industry, Helena Rubinstein and Eugène Schueller, creator of L’Oréal. Brandon’s gripping and sometimes disturbing story explores gender, power, and politics. It stretches back from the darkest days of World War II to the emergence of the modern fashion and makeup industries. With magazines such as Vogue and Cosmopolitan, it covers game-changing product lines such as Avon and Mary Kay.

Ugly Beauty resonates as well with its implications for modern culture, as we enter an era when haute couture and cosmetology exert an ever more powerful influence upon society at large. The concept of Ugly Beauty challenges traditional norms and highlights the dualities in the beauty industry.