Very hard and realistic take of social media and beauty standards. And how this beauty standards change over time and evolve.

The constant evolution of beauty ideals will continue to cause extreme identity disorders which fuels capitalist consumption and the patriarchy. Author Ellen Atlanta dissects how this is happening in our daily lives. A solid addition to the modern feminist canon.

Pixel flesh was an excellent read, I also listened to the audio. A great insight into the beauty and wellness industries and how toxic they can be.

From the moment I heard about this book, I knew I wanted to read it. The title is so gripping! I am a woman who has felt so much of what this book talks about, so deeply! I’m giving this to all of my friends!

Pixel Flesh is a searing exploration of how social media-fueled toxic beauty culture is harmful to women. Through a series of essays, author Ellen Atlanta explores how young women are bombarded by unrealistic and damaging messaging, from filtered, seemingly poreless skin to diet culture and body dysmorphia. Although I am a little older than the target demographic, I worry about the impacts on my teenage daughter’s generation. I am equal parts fascinated and horrified by this topic and its patriarchal underpinnings, and I can see this thought-provoking book being a perfect fit for gender studies classes.

Imgur link goes to instagram graphic scheduled for Sept 27th
Amazon review submitted
Youtube Review upcoming, in editing phase
Blog link goes live Sept 27th

**Readability**: This was very easy to read, though I found at time the author was a little too personal and keeping track of names was a bit much.
**Structure**: This was just a mix of essays with decent bridges between them.
**Density**: 4/10

**Thoughts:**

Pixel Flesh was a bit of a struggle for me, I’m not going to lie. The opening chapters really focus on the the fixation many people have with things such as filler and Botox. These chapters really established that the author on this is writing from a place of privilege that made the rest of the book a little off for me. Statements like ‘No self respecting woman posts an unedited photo’ or stating that everyone in a certain age range has considered fillers/botox was very off-putting for me.

The later essays and chapters were very topical and I enjoyed those, but throughout the book small comments such as the above would appear. It felt jarring and a bit condescending at times. For those of us who don’t come from the socio-economic group she’s clearly from, these felt alienating. I feel like the goal here was to be fairly inclusive, and at the toxicity of beauty culture, instead it ended up making me feel like I was looking in at a different world for a good chunk.

Overall I did enjoy a lot of the essays, I enjoyed things she had to say! But the focus early on on expensive and what I would call ‘fancy’ treatments and treating them as common every day things was jarring and inaccurate. I would recommend for those in the industry or huge fans of the industry but casual readers looking for more on the topic might be able to find a more inclusive and friendly book elsewhere.

This thought-provoking and sobering book is an essential read. Was delighted to speak with the author for a longread thinkpiece on beauty and the backlash for Zoomer magazine's Books section.

I think bringing awareness to the toxic culture of beauty is important. I found some interesting topics but nothing was truly new to me. I feel like there was too much focus on the Kardashians-Jenners.

I enjoyed this book and the perspective the author provided on this incredibly important subject matter. I appreciate that the author included other people’s perspectives as well - this is such a nuanced topic depending on a wide variety of factors & life experience. I found the writing to be quite dense at times, which made it tough to get through.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for sharing this ARC with me in exchange for my honest review.

I totally ate this book up! I found it so relevant for women specifically in today’s culture. Great book and you should def check it out!

I think the most disturbing part of this book is how unsurprising all of it is.

Pixel Flesh offers a raw look into how beauty standards have infected women of all ages all over the world. Like scratching an open wound, this novel explores the reality of trying to simply exist in this age. This all comes from the startling honesty of the author and the testimonies of a variety of women trapped under the weight of the ever evolving and impossible to reach “standard”. It’s a heart wrenching look into the lives of women who are much different than I, and many who are not.

This debut by Ellen Atlanta is incredible. It’s heartbreaking, powerful, and inspiring.

I believe all women should read this book because maybe they won’t feel so alienated in this world, but absolutely every man should read this.

4.5/5⭐️!

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for this ARC!

This book is a scathing rebuttal against the modern beauty culture in the western world. Ellen Atlanta writes this book for all women, if there's not something in any one of these chapters that doesn't resonate with you, then I'm not sure you're reading it right. Atlanta goes over all of it. Ranging from "baby botox" to eating disorders and body dysmorphia to the turbulent world of social media and the expectations/pressure that cyberspace can put on women and girls to adhere to the beauty standard in their appearances; then moving on to slumber parties where we'd fall asleep giggling with our best friends to the nightlife of being a young adult and having to be increasingly aware of anything you consume or the route you take to get back home, and finally to the way that women feel entirely discarded and overlooked once they're established in adulthood.

I thought some of the historical references Atlanta makes throughout this (especially when discussing Sarah Baartman, I knew nothing about her!) were really interesting and added some credibility to the claims she was making. I found chapters 6 and 8 the most impactful, but they related a lot to my own recovery journey the past couple years. There is something both special and heartbreaking about Atlanta having interviewed so many women for this book and the way so many of them were able to articulate things that I thought I'd never be able to figure out how to say. I loaned my copy with all my highlights and annotations to my dietician so she would be able to see some of the things that I haven't known how to say.

I'm excited something like this has been published and is available/accessible to people who need it. The ONLY reason I'm taking any stars away from this book is because some of the narrative felt like it was pushing an agenda a little too hard and I feel like that takes away from some of the credibility that it would otherwise have.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the eARC!

Engaging and thought-provoking, PIXEL FLESH is a deep-dive into the toxic beauty culture that impacts young women today. Drawing on research and the personal experiences of both herself and others she's interviewed, beauty expert Ellen Atlanta examines this culture with a critical eye, showing how unrealistic beauty standards and the pressure to be "perfect" (whether that's by filtering your photos, getting plastic surgery, etc.) hurt so many women, and how that is partly perpetuated by the rise of social media. Like other reviewers have mentioned, I didn't agree with or relate to everything mentioned in the book, but some aspects of it definitely resonated with me, which I think speaks to the fact that no woman is really left untouched or unharmed by the destructive aspects of beauty culture, regardless of our different experiences with it. PIXEL FLESH isn't always an easy read, but it's important, and I think so many people will take away something valuable from it. Thank you to St. Martin's Press for the ARC!

I think this is the most relevant and accurate sequel to earlier feminist books about beauty distortion. I am a bit older than the target for this book but I do see all this in regard to my teenage daughter. The pressure and stress of always being perfect and the stress of social media. I did think this at times presented the same message repetitively and I would have liked more social examples but I do think this a good current addition to the genre. I received a digital copy from NetGalley.

Many thought provoking essays on toxic beauty culture in the age of social media. With so many innovations in the modern world, we have the ability to dissect ourselves and others so thoroughly. We try to manipulate our bodies both digitally and physically in real life in the name of beauty culture. I really enjoyed this nonfiction but it is certainly a lot to digest.

After reading this insightful truthful well researched book on toxic beauty culture I feel this book should be taught in all womens studies courses. The author has done a exemplery job highlighting the mysognistic culture we women suffer under and how toxic beauty standards affect us. For young women this is particulary concerning with the negative advertising insulting womens looks, weight and normal appearance . We all have experienced it and of late the online hate vitrol has reached disturbing porporations attacking all women. Our Vice President is atttacked by trump trolls daily online insulting her laugh, hair and looks .Its a disturbing trend in this culture of hate against women.
All of us women can appreciate this book and how our culture discriminates against us. I applaude this book and will be buying hard copies to share for gifts . It is a necessary read for all women. For all of us that have been insulted, discriminated against for our looks and treated with mysognistic behavior this is a must read.
Well done to the author. A must for a feminist studies classes.

Thank you to the author, the publisher and to Net Galley for the opportunity.

Pixel Flesh by Ellen Atlanta is an insightful book on how the toxic beauty culture harms women.
This was a deep but hard hitting read.
I enjoyed it tremendously.

This book was very good! I appreciate it really digging in to the toxic culture that plagues women starting in girlhood. I would Iove to see this book integrated into women’s gender and sexuality studies.

Pixel Flesh

Pixel Flesh by Ellen Atlanta is an incisive journey highlighting the ways in which women are being pressured to conform to beauty standards impossible to achieve.

Most of us are familiar with the way social media distorts our sense of beauty through filters that remove any blemish or extra fat. We may not be as cognizant of how we are manipulated through implicit bias.

- Women who don’t fit the cultural norm of beauty often shadow banned on social media. “Survey data released in 2020 by Salty, an online platform for women, trans and non-binary people, highlighted the fact that plus-sized profiles, queer people and women of colour have been experiencing shadowbanning at a disproportionate rate to those within mainstream communities.”
- Words used to circumvent the patriarchy and “male gaze” end up meaningless when the privileged class use them . For example, when models like Emily Ratajkowski pose naked and label it “empowering” while being the ideal beauty.

In today’s world, the message that women are not enough is everywhere and increasingly targeted at children and teens. I was stunned when I read, “Symptoms can occur as young as kindergarten, with nearly a third of children aged five to six in the US wanting to be thinner. By age seven, one in four children have engaged in some kind of dieting behavior, according to a Common Sense Media report published in 2015.”

At the end of the day, we would all benefit from less social media time and less comparison to others. The systemic change on the other hand seems like an Siyspheon task, one that is never ending and has barely begun.

I recommend this book to anyone interested in the need for systemic change in a system built to shame and control women’s view of themselves.

Genre: Non-fiction
Rating: 4/5

This book hit me hard. Not only did it hit me hard as a female, but it hit me hard as a friend, a sister, a daughter, a wife and a soon-to-be mother. I have so many highlights in this book that I could share to sum up just how incredible this book really was, but since it's an ARC I can't do that (despite how badly I may want to, just to convince you to read this book)!

I think women of all ages, especially those under the age of 40 would gain an insurmountable amount of knowledge and would be able to feel the commonality of what this book has to offer. There were interviews that made me tear up, heartbreaking truths scattered throughout the pages, studies with incredible evidence and quotes that stick with you as you continue to read through the chapters. You can't help but feel all the feelings while you read through this one (and trust me, there will be many). I had more than one "oh wow" moments while reading this one myself.

This book gave a pretty blunt, raw way to approach our lives as women. Especially as women in the 21st century who are surrounded by all things digital. If you find yourself in need of a reality check in the form of a non-fiction book about beauty and all her standards, this should definitely be a book you pick up. This is hands down one of the top non-fiction books I have read so far this year. I highly recommend you give it a read.

Thank you so much to St. Martin's Press for this advanced copy on NetGalley! 🤍