Callgirl: Confessions of an Ivy League Lady of Pleasure
by Jeannette Angell
|
|
Sign in to Goodreads to see your friends' reviews of Callgirl: Confessions of an Ivy League Lady of Pleasure.
discuss this book
friend reviews (0)
To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.
other reviews (showing 1-20 of 78)
Read in January, 2007
recommends it for:
people interested in prostitution
Ah, I love a good whore story. They say that a memoir on prostitution only sells if it ends tragically, or, at the very least, with the woman realizing the error of her wicked ways. The book Callgirl by Jeannette Angell provides neither of these society-demanded conclusions, but instead offers a straightforward account of two years in the life of a woman who teaches at a university by day and caters to the sexual needs of horny men in Boston at night.
The book describes how she came to be a w...more
The book describes how she came to be a w...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
This was fascinating - the story of a college teacher's years in the mid-90s spent working as a prostitute, while at the same time teaching a class on the history of prostitution. Intelligently written and thoughtful - I found it really difficult to put down, and her thoughts on the differences in the way men and women approach sex in the context of sex work really struck me. Unfortunately, as the author notes, while she had a relatively good experience as a sex worker, there are many women wh...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in January, 2007
recommends it for:
open-minded folk
Ivy-league professor and world traveller... and callgirl?
This book presents a unique and intesely interesting portrait of a woman who worked as a professor by day and a callgirl by night, told by the woman who actually lived it. Beyond the sheer shock-value of the book, there is an interesting look into prostitution throughout history, class, age and gender as relating to sexuality, as well as a look at the drug-scene that many callgirls find themselves trapped in.
This book presents a unique and intesely interesting portrait of a woman who worked as a professor by day and a callgirl by night, told by the woman who actually lived it. Beyond the sheer shock-value of the book, there is an interesting look into prostitution throughout history, class, age and gender as relating to sexuality, as well as a look at the drug-scene that many callgirls find themselves trapped in.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Really interesting story, but I felt Angell's prose both didactic and maybe even a little boring (well, not really boring, she's just not a spectacular writer). This isn't a literary novel I realize but Angell is no Mary Karr or Dorothy Allison, either. I'm glad she wrote this book, and hope lots of people find it, so I don't mean to sound too negative. I've got to give it 2 stars, though, because for me the writing marred the pleasure of the subject matter.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Who would have thought that a book about a professor moonlighting as a callgirl could be long and boring. Angel has managed that feat and more. She spends most of the time complaining that all prostitutes are stereotyped as various things (while frequently engaging in these stereotypical behaviors) yet she generalizes the entire male population as one giant stereotype. She's frequently insulting and just plain a poor writer. Go read something else.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in July, 2005
A woman's true story about being a callgirl in Boston in the late 90's and a Ph.D by day. I'm not sure what I'd expected but it fell short. Certainly it was interesting, but somehow surprisingly dry, perhaps too academic. Sometimes I felt like I was reading a factual non-emotional account of events, when what I wanted to know was how she felt about her experiences.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
I had this lady as a teacher for a french teacher in 7th grade. Not only does this book give insight to why she always came in bandaged and bruised, but it also makes me sad for her and realistic about the double lives that people lead, esp. in a small, town like fine.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in September, 2007
I am fascinated by prostitution especially modern prostitution and this woman was a professor with a PhD who worked as a call girl in boston for 2 years to pay bills. She recounts all different types of clients and how she lived the double life; entertaining story.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in June, 2006
recommends it for:
Women
Really a great book. Looks at the story of a callgirl who had her graduate degree and just needed to make some money. Has a really interested look at the industry and opened up a new world to me that I really never knew too much about. Definitely worth reading!
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
recommends it for:
smart prostitutes
I love narrative nonfiction. I love smart girls. I love prostitutes. This book is easy to read, funny, fascniating, and talks about the stuff I always wanted to know about being a high class call girl (drugs, penis sizes, money).
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in December, 2007
This book was, quite frankly, fascinating. The author dispels quite a few myths about how the world's oldest profession. What's really amazing is how she managed to live a double life for three years!
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in March, 2008
This was an interesting book. I found myself more intrigued by the subtext which provided a closer look at the inner workings of the author's mind than in the chopped-up memoirs she put onto the page.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in January, 2003
recommends it for:
aspiring ladies of the night
Looks and brains are the full package. It's just a job and it pays well. It wont last forever. Most of this book was pretty good. At points I wasn't as interested, but overall I'm glad I read it.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
I'm only into the first chapter but Her writing style is irritating, I hope I can get into it.
I finished it but it was...Eh..
I finished it but it was...Eh..
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
