Kabul Beauty School: An American Woman Goes Behind the Veil

by Deborah Rodriguez , Kristin Ohlson

ITo help Afghani women - repressed for years - Deborah Rodriguez, a beautician, opens a beauty school, in 2002, in Afghanistan after the fall of the Taliban. She fights a government that ultimately closes her down, empowers women to earn their own money, and brings beauty back to a world sanded gray by the relentless rubbing of the autocratic Taliban.

"Miss Debbie", as she is known, fights to keep her bubble of safety for Afghanistan's women, marries an Afghani man, and tells one great story.

She went to Afghanistan in 2002 after the fall of the Taliban as a nurse's aide, but soon went back to a previous calling as a hairdresser for Western workers. Soon, she was styling and coloring the hair of increasing numbers of Afghani women.

She returned to the US, gathered beauty products donated by American companies and went back to start her school. Her story was chronicled on numerous US and European television shows and now we have the book. Who says being a hairdresser doesn't take grit!

Patrick Cameron's Dressing Long Hair - Book 2

by Patrick Cameron

Making Faces

by by Kevyn Aucoin

Kevyn Aucoin's book, Making Faces, covers the basics of makeup application and technique, to be sure. Then he absolutely blows you away, with step-by-step directions for dozens of different looks. (Is that really Lisa Presley or Marylyn?) Making Faces also features instructional full-color sketches with each face.

Raul found this book when he assisted the Seattle personality, DJ and gonzo hairstylist - Ruben Rivera - pump up some hair at a late-night photo shoot and Ruben, recently back from Guadalajara where he soaked up sun (with his dad's cash) and learned makeup from Kevyn's books!

Triple threat, yes? (See the results of this shoot by going to our model page for Melissa.) It doesn't hurt that Ruben is a bloody genius mutant artist, but the book was clear enough that even Raul can follow along with sponge in hand.

Kevyn is truly an inspirational artist who has just started his obviously brilliant career.

Bad Hair: A Collection of Bad Hairstyles So Bad You Can't Look Away

by James Innes Smith and Henrietta Webb

"Oh yeah, baby, you come here a lot? Well, I do and it is soooo groovy, baby. I see you drool at my cool mod style, and I can tell you are enjoying the view, baby." (Or something like that.)

It's all about spray, gel, mousse, more spray, crimping irons, and the glorious ball-o-perm. The era of big hair is praised with mall bangs texture perms and, if we look closer, we can just about see the reverend Vidal Von Bouffant laying hands and Velcro rollers on foreheads, invoking the hair to "rise up and cascade: mousse away!"

Let's hope, if you should casually drop this book on your salon coffee table, the more carnivorous of your stylists won't whisk it away and wump some bada.. (shut your mouth) on the Saturday clients…or, maybe they will and that would be a groove thang, sugar.