Natural Beauty

Grammy Award–winning violinist Huang introduces an unnamed narrator, a gifted Chinese American pianist, whose childhood studies at a prestigious conservatory were funded by an anonymous donor. She learned her skills from her parents, who fled China during the Cultural Revolution. When an accident debilitates her parents, she leaves behind the piano to find work. She is offered a job at Holistik, a world-renowned high-end beauty and wellness company known for its ground-breaking products. There, she’s given supplements and beauty products, with regimens for every aspect of her life. As months pass, her body changes, and her features begin to resemble all the women at Holistik. As her life becomes more entwined with Holistik, she learns that beauty comes at a cost. Huang’s debut is a harrowing tale about the beauty industry, consumerism, race, identity, and self-worth. Carolyn Kang’s narration captures the narrator’s conflicted emotional journey, and her distinct voices for secondary characters make conversations easy to follow.