Loose Girl: A Memoir of Promiscuity
by Kerry Cohen Hoffmann
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Read in August, 2008
It's a challenge not to judge the character of someone who writes such a revealing and vulnerable memoir, but I'll do my best to stick to my views on the book, not my opinions of the author, whether I saw myself in her or what she should have done.
I was struck by the sense her therapist in college, Dierdre, was a composite character. It's rare when you're being helped by those finishing up their masters or have an internship at a college to see the same therapist for more than one year. ...more
I was struck by the sense her therapist in college, Dierdre, was a composite character. It's rare when you're being helped by those finishing up their masters or have an internship at a college to see the same therapist for more than one year. ...more
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Read in March, 2008
Reading this book was kind of hard going, especially at first. I don't want to give the indication that the writing was bad; it was actually really good, but that was part of why it was hard to get through. Kerry Cohen's matter-of-fact narration of her teenage years, and the way she spared nothing in her quest for attention and approval from boys, is unflinching, and sometimes it's hard to make it through the harsh stories she tells, especially when she describes with clarity and detail the feel...more
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Read in May, 2008
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Read in June, 2008
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Read in August, 2008
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In "Loose Girl", Kerry Cohen has written a memoir of startling clarity and unblinking honesty. So often, memoir has proven to be a vehicle for proselytization or even vindication, but Cohen resists the temptation to assign blame or explain away the personal impulses that drove her to reckless behaviors and a pattern of promiscuity and heartbreak. Instead she is straightforward and clear, exploring her own weaknesses and her dysfunctional quest for love and intimacy through unrewarding ...more
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Read in July, 2008
Kerry Cohen was first aware of her power over men at the age of eleven. Thereupon she progressed from kissing to petting to oral sex and an increasing promiscuity.
Kerry parents went through a divorce and then her mother decides to leave to pursue a medical education in the Philippines. Kerry feels abandoned by both her mother and father. She is left with her father who does not seem to care or even to know how to parent. He often joined her friends in smoking a joint or even in providing the...more
Kerry parents went through a divorce and then her mother decides to leave to pursue a medical education in the Philippines. Kerry feels abandoned by both her mother and father. She is left with her father who does not seem to care or even to know how to parent. He often joined her friends in smoking a joint or even in providing the...more
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Read in July, 2008
A quick and good read as biographies go. Not much in way of wit or prose, it's a rather raw and straight forward telling of how and why the author came to make the decisions she did regarding sex and relationships. Yes, there's parental issues and what no mentioned but most of it is about her need to feel loved. I think that's why I liked the book as much as I did; I can completely relate to the feelings she describes. Granted I haven't had sex with even remotely close to the number of peopl...more
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Read in June, 2008
Kerry Cohen discovered that her body gave her power over boys and men. Early on she described an angst, a turmoil, that everybody experiences and must cope with in some way. Some attempt to deal through drugs, alcohol, exercise or by following their ambitions and dreams. Kerry chose sex. She sought love and true intimacy. What she found instead were lasting confusion and an emptiness that did nothing to lessen her pain. Will Kerry realize in time that she had been searching for validation of her...more
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Read in July, 2008
Good lord, I already love this book. While I haven't had sex with anywhere near forty men, I VERY MUCH understand what Kerry is describing just on the book jacket. I was crying reading the intro in the bookstore!!! Ugh. I can't tell if this is gonna be a healty read for me or not. So far, I've only read about fifty pages. It makes me both disgusted and horny at the same time... We shall see...
7/23: About half way through now. God, such truth. Anything for love, I suppose.
7/25, ...more
7/23: About half way through now. God, such truth. Anything for love, I suppose.
7/25, ...more
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Read in June, 2008
recommends it for:
Fans of Addiction Biographies
Loose Girl is a well focused look at one woman's journey through insecurity, dysfunction and unhappiness. It reads a lot like many other 'addiction' books but since the 'addiction' it covers is sex, the highs and lows are a lot less extreme. Author Kerry Cohen does a good job of drawing the reader in and
creating a very vivid and engaging world. Her writing is clear, flowing and polished. I found myself zipping through the book fully engaged with Cohen's journey. My biggest gripe is that the...more
creating a very vivid and engaging world. Her writing is clear, flowing and polished. I found myself zipping through the book fully engaged with Cohen's journey. My biggest gripe is that the...more
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A memoir that at times I felt many girls growing up today and years ago could relate. However, it also became redundant with the talk of constant sex, guilty feelings of "unwant." I did like the beginning and the end of the book and felt they could have left out the middle. Overall it is a good book if you feel you have something in common with the author. The author could have used more description in her feelings instead of glancing over them; perhaps afraid to divulge too much s...more
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Read in July, 2008
This book is not particularly sexy, and it isn't supposed to be. I read it because of the discussion about addiction to attention. It's something I've always been curious about (how does one person internalize someone else's expectations, social, sexual, or whatever?). In this case it's about how (some) women become addicted to male attention. The problem is pretty well demonstrated from the personal experience of the author (which, of course, is anecdotal evidence of the problem). It's still a ...more
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Read in June, 2008
recommended to Lynn by:
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This is a book that every woman needs to read! Even more so if you are the parent of a daughter. I pair this with Pledged by Alexandra Robbins as "Must Reads" for any girl on her way to college, in college, or about to send their own daughter to college.
Kerry gives a powerful and moving picture of what could happen when we don't empower our own girls to take charge of their bodies as well as their minds. By sharing her painful past with us, she hopes to give us the tools we need...more
Kerry gives a powerful and moving picture of what could happen when we don't empower our own girls to take charge of their bodies as well as their minds. By sharing her painful past with us, she hopes to give us the tools we need...more
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I actually agree point for point with Wanda's review, and refer you to it if you're interested in reading "a memoir of promiscuity".
i would only add that this might be a good read for those of you studying the puissance/jouissance of sex and gender roles in contemporary society...
the book transitioned - for me - from gauche memoir-lite to interesting when i realized that the author seems to be completely unresolved RE: her issues, but continues to write from a position of fal...more
i would only add that this might be a good read for those of you studying the puissance/jouissance of sex and gender roles in contemporary society...
the book transitioned - for me - from gauche memoir-lite to interesting when i realized that the author seems to be completely unresolved RE: her issues, but continues to write from a position of fal...more
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Has a copy to sell/swap
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Read in May, 2008
Kind of depressing--will we ever have a society where women can be equally as promiscuous as men, if they want to be, and not have it stem from and/or result in trauma?--but a very good read. I'm also very intrigued by memoirs: the fact that they're true makes a well-written one sometimes more compelling than fiction, but I feel for the author and the loss of her privacy. I have to wonder if it would be worth it.
As a side note, it's really interesting to read this after GIRLBOMB, since this ...more
As a side note, it's really interesting to read this after GIRLBOMB, since this ...more
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This book is appropriately titled as it is a description of the sexual journey of a girl who begins having sex at an early age and with many partners. It is the typical story of a girl who is looking for love but cannot find it because love is not found in casual sex. It is very sad at times, due to the fact that it took her so long to see that this was not the way to get what she was looking for. Oftentimes we do make the same mistakes over and over again before learning our lesson, however it ...more
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