The beard as a symbol of body positivity – 26 amazing beard stories from A to Z, each illustrated by the convinced beard wearer Vitali Konstantinov.

Artists, emperors, hipsters, extremists, pharaohs, philosophers, prophets, priests and revolutionaries - they all have one thing in common: their facial hair is not just a freak of nature. It is a confession or a protest, a sign of belonging or of demarcation. Beards and non-beards symbolise epochs.

This book offers a smorgasbord of entertaining anecdotes on the subject of beards: the authors introduce us to the American playoff beard, the pirate Blackbeard, the failed CIA assassination attempt "Un-beard Fidel Castro", the Russian beard tax, the "Beard Liberation Front" and the band "The Beards". Bearded women like Saint Wilgefortis and Instagram star Harnaam Kaur are not left out either.