The Face

Economist

...The cumulative point seems to be “Hey, we have faces! Aren’t we cool!”, which is fine in its way, until Mr McNeill gets to beauty, when he lets drop that people “everywhere have virtually the same sense of facial beauty,” a Darwinian view which is neither new nor uncontroversial, and which he himself appears to hedge in his conclusion.

Library Journal

If, as Cicero noted, 'Everything is in the face,' then this book should have universal appeal. Science journalist McNeill considers why humans developed their characteristic facial components and why we find certain features more appealing than others. The questions he poses range from the fundamental (why did sense organs come to 'cluster up front?') to the more controversial (is there such a thing as universal beauty?). McNeill borrows examples from art, literature, history, and mythology to illustrate how the face figures in our interactions with others across a variety of cultures. Among the fascinating issues he explores are the act of kissing, veiling the face, the changing fashion in beards, eyewitness error, mirrors, cosmetics, and the phenomena of crying and laughter. While not an essential purchase, McNeill's book provides a unique slant on a very personal subject and is written in a straightforward, entertaining style that should appeal to many readers. -- Laurie Bartolini, MacMurray College Library, Springfield, Illinois

Library Journal

If, as Cicero noted, 'Everything is in the face,' then this book should have universal appeal. Science journalist McNeill considers why humans developed their characteristic facial components and why we find certain features more appealing than others. The questions he poses range from the fundamental (why did sense organs come to 'cluster up front?') to the more controversial (is there such a thing as universal beauty?). McNeill borrows examples from art, literature, history, and mythology to illustrate how the face figures in our interactions with others across a variety of cultures. Among the fascinating issues he explores are the act of kissing, veiling the face, the changing fashion in beards, eyewitness error, mirrors, cosmetics, and the phenomena of crying and laughter. While not an essential purchase, McNeill's book provides a unique slant on a very personal subject and is written in a straightforward, entertaining style that should appeal to many readers. -- Laurie Bartolini, MacMurray College Library, Springfield, Illinois

Daneet Steffens

. . .[B]ursting with information....the endless barrage of facts...makes for a hodgepodge of mind-numbing images that quickly fade from memory...
— Entertainment Weekly

The Economist

...[T]he cumulative point seems to be "Hey, we have faces! Aren't we cool!", which is fine in its way, until Mr McNeill gets to beauty, when he lets drop that people "everywhere have virtually the same sense of facial beauty," a Darwinian view which is neither new nor uncontroversial, and which he himself appears to hedge in his conclusion.

Kirkus Reviews

From ear to ear and including everything in between, a comprehensive, occasionally disproportionate, look at all things related to the human face. Core signifier of our selves, indicator of all emotions, center of four of our five senses, the human face is the fine-tuned product of relentless natural selection, says McNeill. The slight ridges on our ears, for example, help us locate the direction of sounds. Tears oxygenate the eyes where blood vessels would hinder vision. The nose helps make us better swimmers, and thus, according to one theory, carried our ancestors through a difficult evolutionary period when much of their time was spent in the water hiding from predators. Though facial characteristics may differ among the races, often for reasons related to climate (long noses are an advantage in a warm, dry climate, lighter skin can more easily synthesize vitamin D from weak sunlight, and so on), there is a remarkable universality to both our expressions and our notions of beauty. A smile or a frown have the same meaning across every single human culture. Similarly, a great beauty in Afghanistan will still be beautiful in Zimbabwe. The theory behind this universality holds that beauty is largely a function of symmetry—the more symmetrical, the more attractive. Symmetry in turn reflects healthy genes and thus indicates good reproductive possibilities. McNeill (co-author with Paul Freiberger of Fuzzy Logic) does a good job of welding his disparate mix of history, physiology, biology, and sociology into an engaging, digression-rich narrative. It's a notable achievement, though some judicious nipping and tucking would have helped finesse the general pacing (an excursus ontheories of humor seems particularly unnecessary). But McNeill's thoroughness, wide-ranging research, and deft touch make for an engaging and revealing tale.