Reviews tagging 'Drug use'

Pimp: Memorias de un chulo by Iceberg Slim

8 reviews

cmcrockford's review against another edition

3.5

challenging dark sad tense slow-paced

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Undeniably gripping though I really wanted a shower after. The memoir of a real bastard that ironically glorified pimping with 2 million copies sold even when it's a real cautionary tale - being a pimp is just abusing women to make money (while not working yourself) while it also usually ends with you "dead or in the can," as Tony S. would say. (And at a young age, the guys who mentor Iceberg don't last THAT long.) The biggest insight here is at the end when Slim says the pimping game usually involves the same skills as sales in the "straight" world, and I thought of Glengarry Glen Ross and how much the American system involves elaborate, endless hustles and cons. That's only gotten worse in the decades since the book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Homophobia, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Excrement, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Classism

All the triggers, all of them

cmhaste's review against another edition

4.0

dark emotional informative reflective sad fast-paced

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Police brutality, Trafficking, Grief, Stalking, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail

waedawson's review against another edition

5.0

dark tense fast-paced

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Awesome book about Pimps that influenced your favorite hip hop stars. Iceberg Slim was the birth of hip hop, and no one can tell me otherwise.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Racial slurs, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence

eskay1891's review against another edition

4.0

dark fast-paced

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This is the most repulsive and rawest book I've ever read. Though I had an idea of what i was getting into, the evil and deceit is just hard to digest.

Iceberg Slim (Robert Beck) retired from Pimp profession !!, at ripe old age of 42, since he could not compete with young pimps who were more brutal. And Slim was beating his girls (he calls them whores) with coat hanger wires, punching, psychologically manipulating,...etc. If this is how he was, not sure about the young pimps.

Now my vocabulary is mildly doped with "whorelogy" terms, which will be sticking with me for awhile and I dont think i will ever have to use them.

Everything being said, I would recommend this book, but with a strong stomach.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Cursing, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Police brutality, Trafficking, Sexual harassment

beccasllibrary's review against another edition

4.0

dark reflective fast-paced

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A violent and graphic look at pimping from Iceberg Slim. Pimp makes no attempt to gloss over or glorify what this job entails. Trigger warnings should be observed. The memoir follows Iceberg's career from his childhood in the great depression as a black man with few to no options outside of crime and onto a middle-aged pimp constantly in and out of prison and grappling with the deaths of his friends, family, and career while he tried to reclaim his previous success. Iceberg makes it clear in his first chapter that this is a cautionary tale against entering the sex work and criminal industries but spends the rest of the book showing rather than telling, do not expect to be given a lecture on morality. Was this enjoyable? No. Was it interesting? Absolutely

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Homophobia, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Trafficking, Murder, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, Classism

cleches's review against another edition

2.75

dark emotional informative slow-paced

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, Sexual content, Sexual violence

Moderate: Violence, Murder

machenn's review against another edition

3.5

dark reflective sad tense medium-paced

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Trafficking

Moderate: Addiction, Death

traciereads's review against another edition

4.0

challenging dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Police brutality, Trafficking, Grief, Murder

Moderate: Alcoholism, Self harm, Excrement, Stalking, Death of parent

Minor: Child death, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Transphobia, Vomit, Abortion, Suicide attempt