To Wash or Not to Wash is like having a brutally honest (and wildly funny) friend spill all the hygiene tea you never knew you needed. This book tackles everything from how often we should shower to the crazy stuff we believe about skincare, all while making you laugh and go, “Wait… I do that too.” I really enjoyed how it mixed science with sarcasm—it gave me facts without feeling preachy and made me totally rethink my beauty shelf. It’s the kind of read that sticks with you every time you reach for your razor or face wash.

🛁 You’ll never look at your loofah the same way again. 🧼

This book is messy—in the BEST way. Like, it straight-up dragged my skincare routine and made me cackle while doing it. To Wash or Not to Wash is part comedy, part wake-up call, and totally addicting. I learned weird stuff (anal hygiene?? yes, it goes there), realized I waste a lot of money on stuff I don’t need, and laughed like a maniac reading about shower myths. If you’ve ever stood in your bathroom wondering “Am I doing this right?”—grab this book, thank me later, and maybe toss that third face serum. 😂🧴✨

Fresh, Funny, and Slightly Funky!

This book had me side-eyeing my face wash shelf, laughing out loud in the shower, and seriously wondering if my loofah has been lying to me—To Wash or Not to Wash is the hygiene wake-up call we didn’t know we needed!

To Wash or Not to Wash: Clean, Dirty, or Just Confused? is a funny and helpful guide to modern beauty and cleansing standards. Each chapter tackles a different topic, such as bathing versus showering, shampoo, shaving, and moisturizers. He presents a brief cultural history and explains what types of products are currently used in North America today, and their frequency of use. He describes what active ingredients are useful, and what ingredients to avoid. Additionally, he mentions environmental effects and conservations steps in each chapter.

Interestingly the author is not an expert, just an informed consumer who is baffled by the array of products in household bathrooms. His observations and descriptions are hilarious and provide convincing arguments to persuade family members that they don’t need to buy seventeen shampoos. To Wash or Not to Wash is an excellent reference for every household, and a MUST-HAVE for households with teen-agers or people who are frequent customers at beauty supply stores.

I received an advance review copy (ARC) from NetGalley and the author for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Liked the idea, liked the tone, liked the format (with the quizzes inside the chapters)… but the solutions were often too basic.
The « French and Germans are so chill about shaving » part made me wonder how much misinformation the book actually contained.
So, I guess it has good potential (minus the misleading clichés) as an introduction for teenagers and young adults but I wished I learned more things reading it.

This has some interesting facts, but it’s tone is quite judgemental and most of it is based on the authors opinion, not scientific, not based on biology, the authors opinion based on a bit of research and mostly hearsay. Giving two stars as it was interesting but as for something useful that you can make choices on or base any decisions on, go speak to a professional, a hairdresser or beautician bases their opinion on some training at least ,rather than reading one man’s opinion on cleanliness from YouTube, tik tok anf twitter/ x

Spoiler alert: This book will not spark major enlightenment or solve your skin issues with a dab of magic potion, but it’s an informative roundup of what’s real in skincare and what’s not….and, most importantly, it’s FUN to read. It debunks the flannel we get shoved at us by marketing/advertising/influencers and presents the reader with a sane and balanced viewpoint.
Remarkably enlightened for a (dare I say it) male author and even more remarkably without a trace of mansplaining.
And the answer is:”And every now and then, skip the whole routine and just be. Because at the end of the day, you’re not a project to be fixed. You’re a person to be cared for.”