Awards

• Commended for Pulitzer Prize (Memoir/Autobiography) 2023

Overview

Finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in Memoir or Autobiography A New York Times Notable Book of 2022 * Vulture's #1 Memoir of 2022 * A Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, USA TODAY, Time, BuzzFeed, Publishers Weekly, Booklist, and New York Public Library Best Book of the Year * One of Oprah Daily's 33 Memoirs That Changed a Generation From Chloé Cooper Jones--Pulitzer Prize finalist, philosophy professor, Whiting Creative Nonfiction Grant recipient--an ""exquisite"" (Oprah Daily) and groundbreaking memoir about disability, motherhood, and the search for a new way of seeing and being seen. ""I am in a bar in Brooklyn, listening to two men, my friends, discuss whether my life is worth living."" So begins Chloé Cooper Jones's bold, revealing account of moving through the world in a body that looks different than most. Jones learned early on to factor ""pain calculations"" into every plan, every situation. Born with a rare congenital condition called sacral agenesis which affects both her stature and gait, her pain is physical. But there is also the pain of being judged and pitied for her appearance, of being dismissed as ""less than."" The way she has been seen--or not seen--has informed her lens on the world her entire life. She resisted this reality by excelling academically and retreating to ""the neutral room in her mind"" until it passed. But after unexpectedly becoming a mother (in violation of unspoken social taboos about the disabled body), something in her shifts, and Jones sets off on a journey across the globe, reclaiming the spaces she'd been denied, and denied herself. From the bars and domestic spaces of her life in Brooklyn to sculpture gardens in Rome; from film festivals in Utah to a Beyoncé concert in Milan; from a tennis tournament in California to the Killing Fields of Phnom Penh, Jones weaves memory, observation, experience, and aesthetic philosophy to probe the myths underlying our standards of beauty and desirability and interrogates her own complicity in upholding those myths. ""Bold, honest, and superbly well-written"" (Andre Aciman, author of Call Me By Your Name) Easy Beauty is the rare memoir that has the power to make you see the world, and your place in it, with new eyes.

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9781982151997

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Reviews

"""Gorgeous, vividly alive."" --The New York Times ""A rich, decadent book that rewards close reading... anyone who immerses themselves in Chloé's writing will come away with a greater understanding of everything beautiful about the human experience, and how to behold it."" --Isaac Fitzgerald, The Today Show ""[A] work of genuine genius... a travelog; a philosophical tract; a meditation on what it is to live in this world with a visible disability; a consideration of what beauty means, what parenthood means, what art and fame mean. If this sounds like too much, it's not: Ms. Jones is a brilliant writer, a composer of stunning sentences that nail down experiences and emotions I would have thought ineffable."" --Elizabeth McCracken, The Wall Street Journal ""[An] exquisite memoir."" --O, The Oprah Magazine ""Extraordinary."" --Arianna Rebolini, Vulture ""Easy Beauty is bold, honest, and superbly well-written. Chloé Cooper Jones is ruthless in probing our weakest and darkest areas, and does so with grace, humor, and ultimately, with something one seldom finds: kindness and humanity."" --André Aciman, author of Call Me By Your Name ""A spiky and inspiring book for any reader at odds with a superficial culture."" --Los Angeles Times ""Part travelogue and part treatise... Philosophy, art, gender, sex, travel, motherhood, academia, humor--this book has it all."" --New York Public Library ""Written with the curiosity of a scholar, the compassion of a mother, and the keen insight of a person who has lived on the margins of what is deemed acceptable, Easy Beauty is a rare, poignant gem of a memoir... Transcendent."" --Bookreporter ""Jones resists sentimentality and is as unsparing on herself as she is on other people, yet she writes with such graciousness, too. A wonderful debut."" --Buzzfeed ""Transcendent... In keeping the reader close as she navigates the world, Jones lets us in on the effort it takes to move through the world in a disabled body... This is all rendered in sentences, insights, and metaphors so precise and evocative that demonstrate her literary mastery."" --Oprah Daily ""Soul-stretching, breathtaking... A profound, impressive, and wiser-than-wise contemplation of the way Jones is viewed by others, her own collusion in those views, and whether any of this can be shifted... A game-changing gift to readers."" --Booklist (starred review) ""Jones' writing is thoughtful and deeply felt, and her stories will fascinate anyone who wants to look at the world in a new way."" --Apple Books (Best of the Month) ""Perceptive, stylish, and darkly funny, Easy Beauty is an act of grace, and a reckoning. Chloé Cooper Jones is a remarkable writer--I would follow her mind anywhere."" --Anna Wiener, author of Uncanny Valley ""I recommend Easy Beauty to anyone who has wanted beauty badly, even without knowing quite what it is, but who could never seem to access it. At least, I'm that sort of anyone, and I could feel and recognize parts of myself in every moment of this book. Chloé Cooper Jones' writing pierces right through and lets a light in."" --Mitski"

In this ambitious and elegant book about seeing and being seen, Chloe Cooper Jones invokes thorny, theoretical material about identity, the social order, and how we measure human value, but her clarity and compassion invite all readers in. She has created a forceful and fresh point of view from which to anatomize power, access, and perception in her precise, unsparing prose. A necessary, relentlessly honest book that feels both of the moment and timeless. --Whiting Foundation Judges citation

A rich, decadent book that rewards close reading... anyone who immerses themselves in Chloe's writing will come away with a greater understanding of everything beautiful about the human experience, and how to behold it. --Isaac Fitzgerald, The Today Show Easy Beauty is bold, honest, and superbly well-written. Chloe Cooper Jones is ruthless in probing our weakest and darkest areas, and does so with grace, humor, and ultimately, with something one seldom finds: kindness and humanity. --Andre Aciman, author of Call Me By Your Name What a gift of a book...Easy Beauty has the rigor and precision of Joan Didion and Maggie Nelson and a forthright humor and naked truth all its own. --Sarah Ruhl, author of Smile Soul-stretching, breathtaking... A profound, impressive, and wiser-than-wise contemplation of the way Jones is viewed by others, her own collusion in those views, and whether any of this can be shifted... A game-changing gift to readers. --Booklist (starred review) [In her] dazzling debut...Chloe Cooper Jones challenges society's rules of attraction with razor-sharp wit and intellect....[and] makes a brilliant case for the beauty of complexity. --Publishers Weekly (starred review) Jones' writing is thoughtful and deeply felt, and her stories will fascinate anyone who wants to look at the world in a new way. --Apple Books (Best of the Month) Perceptive, stylish, and darkly funny, Easy Beauty is an act of grace, and a reckoning. Chloe Cooper Jones is a remarkable writer--I would follow her mind anywhere. --Anna Wiener, author of Uncanny Valley I recommend Easy Beauty to anyone who has wanted beauty badly, even without knowing quite what it is, but who could never seem to access it. At least, I'm that sort of anyone, and I could feel and recognize parts of myself in every moment of this book. Chloe Cooper Jones' writing pierces right through and lets a light in. --Mitski In this ambitious and elegant book about seeing and being seen, Chloe Cooper Jones invokes thorny, theoretical material about identity, the social order, and how we measure human value, but her clarity and compassion invite all readers in. She has created a forceful and fresh point of view from which to anatomize power, access, and perception in her precise, unsparing prose. A necessary, relentlessly honest book that feels both of the moment and timeless. --Whiting Foundation Judges citation Chloe Cooper Jones is a writer whose work I don't read, but enter: she weaves her brainy, crackling interior into the sinews of a reality that is forever reminding its participants of the difficulty of living inside a body. Easy Beauty is the most humane book I have read in a long time: in her insistence that we bear witness to each other, Jones calls forth a better, and indeed more beautiful world. I loved this book. --Kristen Radtke, author of Seek You: A Journey Through American Loneliness Jones is a magnificent guide, fiercely sharp and fiercely human. This book is for anyone who wants to immerse into a world of beauty, who wants to get real about the roots of their desire, and who can't quite kick the habit of admiring the structures--and humans--who harm them. The questions she raises will resound in your head for a long time to come. --Lulu Miller, author of Why Fish Don't Exist and host of Radiolab This book is utterly remarkable. I was spellbound by the style, the ideas, the vulnerability, the talent. --Lydia Kiesling, author of The Golden State [An] exquisite memoir. Here Pulitzer finalist Jones reflects on our standards of beauty from the perspective of a disabled woman whose rare congenital condition affects her stature and gait, and leaves her in constant pain. But it's ultimately motherhood that liberates her, and prompts her to reexamine the limitations she has accepted as givens. --O Magazine Cooper Jones challenges the unspoken social taboos about the disabled body, unpacking myths of beauty and our complicity in upholding those myths. Blending journalism, philosophy, and memoir, it's a book that everyone will be talking about this Spring. --Lit Hub Masterful... This book will take your breath away. --Debutiful Easy Beauty sinks its teeth into you from the first sentence; Jones' razor-sharp prose is drenched in honesty and intellect. [A] necessary--funny, brilliant, moving, and unflinching-- read. --Apartment Therapy

Easy Beauty is bold, honest, and superbly well-written. Chloe Cooper Jones is ruthless in probing our weakest and darkest areas, and does so with grace, humor, and ultimately, with something one seldom finds: kindness and humanity. --Andre Aciman, author of Call Me By Your Name What a gift of a book...Easy Beauty has the rigor and precision of Joan Didion and Maggie Nelson and a forthright humor and naked truth all its own. --Sarah Ruhl, author of Smile [In her] dazzling debut...Chloe Cooper Jones challenges society's rules of attraction with razor-sharp wit and intellect....[and] makes a brilliant case for the beauty of complexity. --Publishers Weekly *starred* review Perceptive, stylish, and darkly funny, Easy Beauty is an act of grace, and a reckoning. Chloe Cooper Jones is a remarkable writer--I would follow her mind anywhere. --Anna Wiener, author of Uncanny Valley I recommend Easy Beauty to anyone who has wanted beauty badly, even without knowing quite what it is, but who could never seem to access it. At least, I'm that sort of anyone, and I could feel and recognize parts of myself in every moment of this book. Chloe Cooper Jones' writing pierces right through and lets a light in. --Mitski In this ambitious and elegant book about seeing and being seen, Chloe Cooper Jones invokes thorny, theoretical material about identity, the social order, and how we measure human value, but her clarity and compassion invite all readers in. She has created a forceful and fresh point of view from which to anatomize power, access, and perception in her precise, unsparing prose. A necessary, relentlessly honest book that feels both of the moment and timeless. --Whiting Foundation Judges citation Chloe Cooper Jones is a writer whose work I don't read, but enter: she weaves her brainy, crackling interior into the sinews of a reality that is forever reminding its participants of the difficulty of living inside a body. Easy Beauty is the most humane book I have read in a long time: in her insistence that we bear witness to each other, Jones calls forth a better, and indeed more beautiful world. I loved this book. --Kristen Radtke, author of Seek You: A Journey Through American Loneliness Jones is a magnificent guide, fiercely sharp and fiercely human. This book is for anyone who wants to immerse into a world of beauty, who wants to get real about the roots of their desire, and who can't quite kick the habit of admiring the structures--and humans--who harm them. The questions she raises will resound in your head for a long time to come. --Lulu Fisher, author of Why Fish Don't Exist and host of Radiolab This book is utterly remarkable. I was spellbound by the style, the ideas, the vulnerability, the talent. --Lydia Kiesling, author of The Golden State [An] exquisite memoir. Here Pulitzer finalist Jones reflects on our standards of beauty from the perspective of a disabled woman whose rare congenital condition affects her stature and gait, and leaves her in constant pain. But it's ultimately motherhood that liberates her, and prompts her to reexamine the limitations she has accepted as givens. --O Magazine Cooper Jones challenges the unspoken social taboos about the disabled body, unpacking myths of beauty and our complicity in upholding those myths. Blending journalism, philosophy, and memoir, it's a book that everyone will be talking about this Spring. --Lit Hub

What a gift of a book...Easy Beauty has the rigor and precision of Joan Didion and Maggie Nelson and a forthright humor and naked truth all its own. --Sarah Ruhl, author of Smile Perceptive, stylish, and darkly funny, Easy Beauty is an act of grace, and a reckoning. Chloe Cooper Jones is a remarkable writer--I would follow her mind anywhere. --Anna Wiener, author of Uncanny Valley I recommend Easy Beauty to anyone who has wanted beauty badly, even without knowing quite what it is, but who could never seem to access it. At least, I'm that sort of anyone, and I could feel and recognize parts of myself in every moment of this book. Chloe Cooper Jones' writing pierces right through and lets a light in. --Mitski In this ambitious and elegant book about seeing and being seen, Chloe Cooper Jones invokes thorny, theoretical material about identity, the social order, and how we measure human value, but her clarity and compassion invite all readers in. She has created a forceful and fresh point of view from which to anatomize power, access, and perception in her precise, unsparing prose. A necessary, relentlessly honest book that feels both of the moment and timeless. --Whiting Foundation Judges citation Chloe Cooper Jones is a writer whose work I don't read, but enter: she weaves her brainy, crackling interior into the sinews of a reality that is forever reminding its participants of the difficulty of living inside a body. Easy Beauty is the most humane book I have read in a long time: in her insistence that we bear witness to each other, Jones calls forth a better, and indeed more beautiful world. I loved this book. --Kristen Radtke, author of Seek You: A Journey Through American Loneliness Jones is a magnificent guide, fiercely sharp and fiercely human. This book is for anyone who wants to immerse into a world of beauty, who wants to get real about the roots of their desire, and who can't quite kick the habit of admiring the structures--and humans--who harm them. The questions she raises will resound in your head for a long time to come. --Lulu Fisher, author of Why Fish Don't Exist and host of Radiolab Easy Beauty is bold, honest, and superbly well-written. Chloe Cooper Jones is ruthless in probing our weakest and darkest areas, and does so with grace, humor, and ultimately, with something one seldom finds: kindness and humanity. --Andre Aciman, author of Call Me By Your Name This book is utterly remarkable. I was spellbound by the style, the ideas, the vulnerability, the talent. --Lydia Kiesling, author of The Golden State

Author Information

Chloé Cooper Jones is a philosophy professor, journalist, and the author of the memoir Easy Beauty, which was named a Best Book of 2022 by The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, Time, and others. She is a contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine, a Whiting Creative Nonfiction Grant recipient and, in 2020, was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in Feature Writing. She lives in Brooklyn, New York.

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