Bald Men


There’s something about bald men. I’m not talking about men who have a shiny spot or thinning hair or the dreaded comb over. I’m talking about men who are celebrating their baldness, boldly shaving that hair to reveal those domes for all the world to see! Daring, no? In this society a thick head of hair screams of youth and vitality. And who knows? Perhaps there’s a nasty surprise waiting to be revealed by the razor. Not every cranium is nicely proportioned to be shone sans the old follicular decoration.  I saw a news article featuring some famous celebs who have glorius cabezas. Bruce Willis, Ving Rhames, Patrick Stewart and Michael Chicklis for starters. These men take bald heads to new heights! But what impresses me more than the heads are the hearts that had the courage to bare themselves to the public, to go bald in a world that has raised hairstylists to the status of cult icons.

 Some authors show that kind of courage in their writing, it seems to me. They risk writing stories that showcase the true, flawed human nature that we try so hard to keep locked away. Or maybe they step out and invent a whole new genre, putting their popularity and sales numbers on the line. A few books/writers that have succeeded in my humble opinion? Folks like Jerry Jenkins, who basically created the whole Christian fiction industry. John Grisham who stepped away from his legal thrillers to write The Painted House. Amazing books like the Harry Potter Series and All The Lovely Bones, Little Bee all dared to explore the unsafe or the untried.  There’s something true in all of them, something lovely and ugly, triumphant and tragic in the characters that live in their pages.

Which books on your shelf dared to bare it all?

Comments

  1. Good morning, Dana! I can comment on the bald men - sort of. I admire those who aren't as gorgeous as the shaved heads, but flaunt their little monk's circle of baldness anyway - Ed Harris, for one. But, I'm not an adventurous reader. I like the true hero and heroine and the HEA. I was hooked on Jody Picoult for a while for her wonderful style, but I just can't deal with the heartbreak on a regular basis. I probably could have written Pollyanna.

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    1. I understand, Muriel. Got to have those happy endings!

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  3. Dana, you have such a beautiful way with words (no wonder I'm LOVING Return to Pelican Inn--almost finished. Poor Rosa...) Anyway, you named a few of my favorite books that have stuck with me for years--All The Lovely Bones wrenched my heart, The Painted House is a masterpiece, and the Harry Potter series--well let's just ask "Am I too old to be a fangirl?" From my own personal shelf of bold books I think I would add Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult and The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson.

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    1. Awww! You're so sweet, Carol! I felt sad for Grisham that The Painted House did not live up to his typical sales numbers, because it just wasn't what people expect from him. I thought it was a lovely story!

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  4. "There’s something true in all of them, something lovely and ugly, triumphant and tragic in the characters that live in their pages."

    I love how you put this, Dana. It's unfortunate in life, but without the elements of ugly and tragic, stories aren't 'real life'. The true beauty of a character is in how they cope with the negatives in life. Witnessing how they overcome the ugly and tragic is what gives readers hope.

    I love the Harry Potter series! And when it comes to bald men, I totally agree. I'm a Star Trek fan too, and Patrick Stewart made bald sexy :). I haven't read The Lovely Bones yet, but it's on my TBR pile. I've never been so intrigued by a title!

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    1. Good one, Rula! That Patrick Stewart knows how to rock the bald head, for sure!

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  5. I think a lot of men are shaving their heads because they don't want to get that receding hairline or small bald spot in the middle like I noticed the other day Prince William has. I tried to visualize what he'd look like if he shaved his head and that probably wouldn't be a good look for him. As for books, I tend not to like too terribly tragic.

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  6. My son and I watch Star Trek TNG every night I read an article that the powers that be considered having Patrick wear a hair piece because someone said, "By the time we get to space, baldness will be cured." Then, someone else said, "By the time we get to space, no one will care." I love Harry Potter. These Lovely Bones riveted me. I've The Painted House but having read it yet. I also have two books by Jodi Picoult but haven't read them.
    Sorry, Carol, the Dragon Tattoo made me want to take a shower. LOL

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  7. Ha! Funny, Pamela! I hope we get to the point where we don't care as much about outward appearances. That will be a good day for humankind! :)

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  8. I love it when a man owns his baldness and takes it all off. I would think it would be very empowered. I was one of those people devouring the Harry Potter books in two or three days (man those things got thick!) And someone mentioned 19 Minutes up there and I think that book was a great but tough given the world we live in. Great post, Dana!

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  9. I love the bald look. Many of the teachers I work with have gone that route, so much nicer than the ponytail falling out of a bald spot. One of my favorite books is Grisham’s “The Painted House.” It’s right up there with “To Kill a Mockingbird.”

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