Now all the fuss around Zoella’s book has died down, it’s good to see other vloggers coming out with books. Within a fortnight, Tanya Burr and Fleur de Force’s books on beauty, fashion and lifestyle came out, and since they seem so similar from first look, we thought it would be worth combining the review.
Tanya’s book came out first at the end of January and this might sound really obvious, but you need to be a big fan of Tanya Burr to read “Love Tanya”. It’s very heavy on the personal anecdotes – it’s more things that Tanya does to deal with anxiety, feel more confident, etc, rather than other peoples tips. This isn’t a bad thing, of course!
The biggest sections (besides the first two autobiographical chapters!) are “Fashion” and “Hair and Nail Essentials”. This was a little surprising, considering that outside of vlogging, Tanya is probably best known for her make up line. The make up section is still pretty useful for someone quite new to using it.
At the end of each chapter are a few lined pages with a prompt on the top of each one. A few examples from the first few chapters:
- “List your top 10 childhood heroes”
- “List the top 10 things that have shaped who you have become”
- “List your skincare regime and the ways you might improve it”
It’s a cute idea, but these prompts could have worked better in a separate booklet – it would make it easier for the reader to work through, and possibly use as future blog post ideas.
There’s quite a variety of topics covered, which are very much aimed at the teenage market that Tania’s videos target. The book is written in a conversational tone which again, works well for the audience. It would be a great gift for someone who was already a fan of Tanya’s vlog.
Fleur’s book came out two days before Valentines Day, and feels less targeted to the existing audience – a shrewd move, as there are a lot more people out there who are not yet fans of either authors channel than who already subscribe. The illustrations by Sally Faye Cotterill work better than photographs in the book. There are only 7 chapters in the book, and surprisingly, the section on YouTube and blogging is the smallest.
Fleur’s book is a lot more informative and less heavy on the personal anecdotes. There is something for everyone in the book and is also written in a friendly, conversational tone. This book would be a good gift for someone with an interest in fashion and beauty – it wouldn’t be as necessary to be a fan of Fleur to read this book.
You can buy “Love, Tanya” by Tania Burr♦ (£6.49) and “The Glam Guide” by Fleur de Force♦ (£7.49) from Amazon
