Style is not just the clothes on our backs—it is self-expression, representation, and transformation.

As a fashion-obsessed Ojibwe teen, Christian Allaire rarely saw anyone that looked like him in the magazines or movies he sought out for inspiration. Now the Fashion and Style Writer for Vogue, he is working to change that—because clothes are never just clothes. Men’s heels are a statement of pride in the face of LGTBQ+ discrimination, while ribbon shirts honor Indigenous ancestors and keep culture alive. Allaire takes the reader through boldly designed chapters to discuss additional topics like cosplay, make up, hijabs, and hair, probing the connections between fashion and history, culture, politics, and social justice.

*A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection

Christian Allaire is an Ojibwe writer who grew up on the Nipissing First Nation reserve in Ontario, Canada. His writing has appeared in ELLE, FLARE, and VOGUE, among other outlets. He is based in New York City.

Christian Allaire's profile page

• Winner, Norma Fleck Award, Canadian Children
• Joint winner, Texas Topaz Reading List
• Joint winner, Cooperative Children’s Book Center Choices List
• Nominated, Rocky Mountain Book Award
• Short-listed, Next Generation Indie Book Award finalist
• Joint winner, Top Ten Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers, YALSA
• Joint winner, Bank Street College of Education’s Book of the Year List
• Commended, Eureka Nonfiction Award Honoree, California Reading Association
• Nominated, Yellow Cedar Award
• Joint winner, Best Bets Book List, OLA
• Joint winner, Booklist Editors’ Choice
• Short-listed, Cybils Awards
• Joint winner, Best of 2021 List, Canadian Children’s Book Centre
• Joint winner, Top 10 Arts Books for Youth, Booklist

“A gorgeous and enticing book about fashion that will broaden definitions and embraces inclusion.”

Waking Brain Cells, 06/10/21

“Though it tackles heavy topics like cultural appropriation and the importance of representation, The Power of Style is resolutely celebratory.”

Vogue, 04/22/21

“A celebration of humanity.”

Black Goddess Reviews, 04/26/21

“An offer to preteens and teens that seek to find their bodies, identities, and experiences reflected in the world of fashion and a contribution to non-fiction on fashion that expands its contours.”

Canadian Children’s Book News, 08/13/21

“A visually stunning celebration of self-expression, self-acceptance, and cultural pride.”

Chatelaine Magazine, 04/21

“Dazzling and empowering . . . Fab drag queens, genderqueer and BIPOC YouTubers demoing makeup, plus-size and gender-bending cosplayers, men wearing high heels and fem fashion—they’re all here, a proud and dazzling explosion of confetti transforming the landscape.”

Booklist, *starred review, 03/02/21

“Ultimately a book about empowerment. It champions diversity and self-acceptance through style and encourages readers to discover new ways of expressing themselves.”

Quill & Quire, 05/21

“A vibrant read about the connections between fashion, culture, and social justice.”

Kirkus Reviews, 02/23/21

“Edifying and uplifting.”

BlackBook, 05/11/21

“The book to appeal to a wide age range. It is important that readers of all ages be given the opportunity to learn that there are others who have had the same or similar experiences of feeling that they were different from their peers because of the way that they looked or dressed. Highly Recommended.”

CM Reviews, 02/12/21