The Unfortunate Importance of Beauty: A Novel

Filipacchi, Amanda

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0393243877 ISBN 13: 9780393243871

Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company, 2015

A magical and comedic take on modern love, the power of friendship, and the allure of disguise. In the heart of New York City, a group of artistic friends struggles with society's standards of beauty. At the center are Barb and Lily, two women at opposite ends of the beauty spectrum, but with the same problem: each fears she will never find a love that can overcome her looks. Barb, a stunningly beautiful costume designer, makes herself ugly in hopes of finding true love. Meanwhile, her friend Lily, a brilliantly talented but plain-looking musician, goes to fantastic lengths to attract the man who has rejected her-with results that are as touching as they are transformative. To complicate matters, Barb and Lily discover that they may have a murderer in their midst, that Barb's calm disposition is more dangerously provocative than her beauty ever was, and that Lily's musical talents are more powerful than anyone could have imagined. Part literary whodunit, part surrealist farce, The Unfortunate Importance of Beauty serves as a smart, modern-day fairy tale. With biting wit and offbeat charm, Amanda Filipacchi illuminates the labyrinthine relationship between beauty, desire, and identity, asking at every turn: what does it truly mean to allow oneself to be seen?

Review:

Funny, surreal, absurd and charmingly preposterous.--Sarah Lyall

A surreal and utterly compelling triumph.--Buzzfeed

[A] zanily satirical, spot-on novel.--Leigh Haber

An ingeniously crafted fictional meditation on power and freedom, essence and appearance that takes the form of a philosophical farce. A delight for the mind that penetrates the heart.--Walter Kirn

Amanda Filipacchi is one of the most original storytelling minds I know. Here, she has written a seductively powerful fable about the ugly powers of beauty, the redemptive powers of creativity, and the nature of true love. Every page abounds in mystery, delight and surprise.--Sheila Heti

The best comic novelist writing today.--Ed Park

Amanda Filipacchi has crafted a delightful gem, an unusual mixture of laughter and suspense. One never knows what's going to happen next in this odd and charming universe. This is a wonderfully absurd and comedic novel that also reads like a page-turning whodunit.--Jonathan Ames

Loopily entertaining.--Joanna Scutts

[A] sure comic touch... smart and sweet... a tribute to the pleasures of friendship.

Readers who'd like to spend a little time at the corner where a brisker Haruki Murakami meets a drier '30 Rock' would do well to seek out Filipacchi's radiantly intelligent and very funny novel.--Ellis Avery

About the Author:

Amanda Filipacchi is the author of three previous novels, Nude Men, Vapor, and, most recently, Love Creeps. Her writing has appeared in Best American Humor and elsewhere. She lives in New York City.