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erintowner's review
5.0
Feminism! Workers' rights! The exploitation of women! The patriarchy! Internalized misogyny!
Go read this book. Jennifer Worley explains the seduction of the sex industry and capitalism and how even activists are human. She investigates complicated emotions, like how empowering being a sexy woman can be and also how humiliating dealing with customers can be. She acknowledges both the good and bad effects from her former profession and represents her co-workers as the intelligent, strong, human people they are.
I also enjoyed the Riot Grrrl, punk, and queer history and culture references in this book.
In closing, fuck capitalism.
Go read this book. Jennifer Worley explains the seduction of the sex industry and capitalism and how even activists are human. She investigates complicated emotions, like how empowering being a sexy woman can be and also how humiliating dealing with customers can be. She acknowledges both the good and bad effects from her former profession and represents her co-workers as the intelligent, strong, human people they are.
I also enjoyed the Riot Grrrl, punk, and queer history and culture references in this book.
In closing, fuck capitalism.
nicmgray's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.75
To anyone who sees this: read this book! Sex, gender, workers rights - what more could you need?
kajensen19's review
5.0
My actual all time favorite book. Why haven’t more people read this? The author makes it seem very story like which makes it a really entertaining read, I got through it really quick because I literally didn’t want to put it down. Made me rethink a lot of things about sex work and feminism in general. Literally made me laugh out loud at times but I also definitely cried once reading it as well. I was so invested in all the people in this book I wish I could follow up with every single one of them. Great queer representation which I wasn’t even expecting, such an all around good book in every way. This book got me excited about reading again. SO good, can’t recommend it enough.
flowerwineandbooks's review
4.0
I was fully immersed in this story! I really enjoyed listening to Jenny's inner monologue about coming to terms with her own ideals of her feminism and whether or not the sex work industry could be a place of power and agency or if it was just a place for the patriarchal exploitation of sex workers. I found the road to unionization of the Lusty Lady so fascinating. Seeing the hard work that went into creating a union and bargaining made me appreciate labor unions in general all the more. It was heartwarming to see other unions show up for these dancers and really rally behind them!
I felt like through listening to this book I really got to know the girls, Grenadine, Velvet, Tori, Honeysuckle, Cinnamon, Lucretia, I just wish there has been more discussion around the racism that was involved in the management of the Lusty Lady and how the union was able to combat this. We just got a small teaser of this part of the story. I also wish that Jenny had either gone into more depth about the history of resistance in sex work that she was able to dig up or provide a "further reading" section at the back of the book. Maybe she did and it wasn't present on the audiobook version.
However, i'm so glad I read this via audio. If I had read this physically, it would have been a 3 star due to the writing style feeling repetitive and the detailed accounts that are obviously paraphrased. The narrator did a fantastic job making this not matter as much in my enjoyment of the story -so that fourth star goes to Eileen Stevens!
I felt like through listening to this book I really got to know the girls, Grenadine, Velvet, Tori, Honeysuckle, Cinnamon, Lucretia, I just wish there has been more discussion around the racism that was involved in the management of the Lusty Lady and how the union was able to combat this. We just got a small teaser of this part of the story. I also wish that Jenny had either gone into more depth about the history of resistance in sex work that she was able to dig up or provide a "further reading" section at the back of the book. Maybe she did and it wasn't present on the audiobook version.
However, i'm so glad I read this via audio. If I had read this physically, it would have been a 3 star due to the writing style feeling repetitive and the detailed accounts that are obviously paraphrased. The narrator did a fantastic job making this not matter as much in my enjoyment of the story -so that fourth star goes to Eileen Stevens!
mayaramakrishnan's review
adventurous
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
sad
medium-paced
5.0
josienaron's review
4.0
i enjoyed this a lot, with some caveats. both a good inside look at the power dynamics of (a segment of) the sex industry + also oddly one of the best accounts of the minutiae of union organizing I can think of? got lost a little when worley spends too much time on her own interiority and maybe hews a little close, whether intentionally or not, to the “exceptional” narrative of doctoral student-as-stripper. also, great narrative about queerness + sex + intimacy and navigating performing sex/performing desire in both work and home spheres, but literally no way that sf’s sex work scene was as cis as you might assume if taking her narrative at face value