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Jan 11, 2012

Judah rated it:

I contemplated one star, but she does have a few insightful moments. What springs to mind first is the vanity on display in the book. Someone holds herself in very high regard. (which, despite what a commenter on another review says, is NOT the same as being proud of one's self) There were moments when I caught myself thinking that if I were to unfortunately find myself trapped in conversation with her, I'd need an icepick for my ear-drums.

What comes to mind next is that it frequentl More...

0 comments like (5 people liked it)

Dec 16, 2010

Jen rated it:

I have to appreciate any woman who tells a story like this without saying, "Look, look what happened to me," but rather "I got seduced by a world that is less glamorous than it seems." OK, so much for literary analysis, but hey, I'm not in the business of that. I'm in the business of reading memoir for pleasure, and while I can't deny the craft of the thing, I did enjoy Febos' story because it felt genuine above all else.

Admittedly, this is a book I thought I mig More...

0 comments like (6 people liked it)

Jun 22, 2011

Shushlibrarian rated it:

I heard about this memoir on NPR and from the interview, it sounded quirky and a bit more fun-spirited. The actual book was a complete downer. The author's drug addiction didn't interest me and her experiences in "the dungeon" were disgusting (and I'm NOT a prude by any means)and twisted. I guess I didn't realize quite how much sexual contact was involved in being a dominatrix or how much brutal violence and bloodshed. I'd kind of assumed that the whole S&M thing was pretty much a mind More...

1 comment like (2 people liked it)

Dec 01, 2010

Maria rated it:

great story. It made me think of the Moulin Rouge really...an amazing book. I was stunned and impressed on how much I liked it. sends a great message across about female independence and showing men they are undeserving of the great women they are lucky to have. I learned about Dommes..I never knew exactly what they were. I assumed they were sluts...prostitutes, but I was way wrong. they are strong, beautiful women who control men with desire. I love this. its great. I found myself laughing at More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jan 02, 2011

Kiesha rated it:

I picked this up on my last east-to-west coast trip when I realized that I had no reading material to ease the long flight. It is about a young woman who goes to New York for college and becomes a dominatrix in a Midtown dungeon somewhere along the way.

I loved the concrete-jungle-where-dreams-are-made feel to this memoir and the blatant yearning for that intangible, story book, bright lights, big city WONDER that is the city. Ahhh, New York...

This is very much a memoir an More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jul 02, 2010

Shana rated it:

I was intrigued when I heard the interview on NPR; after reading her book I can say without question she is a much better interviewer than she is writer. Whip Smart is clearly the result of a pretty face, an interesting job, and an absolutely AMAZING publicist.

Given her career choice I’m apprehensive to use the word boring; perhaps she was so mentally removed from her own story, her own apathetic voice was the only thing that resonated with me. I wanted to hear more about her days, More...

2 comments like (10 people liked it)

Apr 25, 2010

Ruhegeist rated it:

heard a tiny bit of Febos' interview on NPR and was intrigued enough to find and listen to it in full. look forward to reading her book.

i'm really not sure how to rate this book, so i'm giving it 3. i could go either up or down a star. i can agree with all the points other reviewers have made. self indulgent, brutally matter of fact. am i just annoyed with the happily-ever-afterness of the end? some of the disjointedness of the sections/writing? definitely some good and enlig More...

9 comments like (2 people liked it)

Aug 03, 2011

Simon rated it:

A few years ago I might never have picked up Whip Smart, cowed by its sexuality and firm in my belief that we'd all be better off without most of the memoirs being written. The seeling point of the book is of course Melissa Febos' (aka "Justine") description of four years spent working as a dominatrix in a Manhattan dungeon. The practices and fetishes that Febos describes responding to in her clients may thrill or disturb you (this is not a book for those put off by frank sexuality) b More...

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Jun 28, 2011

Nathaniel rated it:

Febos writes about becoming a dominatrix with maturity and compassion--prerequisites, as far as I'm concerned, for deserving a readership in spite of using sex to sell your prose. She avoids taking cheap shots at the men who she dominates and avoids using her book as a condemnation or an apology. This is largely because she is preoccupied with herself and with what impact her decisions are having on her own life and identity.

If you've got low tolerance for extremely self-aware and proc More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Feb 15, 2011

Christaaahh rated it:

Heard an interview with the author on NPR awhile back and ordered the book right away. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story...

I especially LOVE memoirs of dark things such as sex, drugs, rock & roll. So naturally I was drawn to this particular memoir because it highlighted the author’s life in sex work and her struggle with drug use.

Going into the book I set myself up of course expecting a happy ending but leading up to it I was excited to read into a world that I knew no More...

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Apr 05, 2010

R.G. rated it:

In a recent "Studio 360" interview, Mary Karr, responding to a remark about the influence her memoir "The Liar's Club" has had on the publishing world, said that there are a lot of bad memoirs out there that she just wasn't responsible for.

I'm afraid "Whip Smart" might just be another of those memoirs.

Who would think that a memoir about a college student moonlighting as a professional dominatrix could be . . . boring? But, to me, "Whip More...

0 comments like (4 people liked it)

Mar 28, 2010

christa rated it:

Terry Gross is the voice in my head who indirectly tells me what to do. And this time, the host of NPR's "Fresh Air" introduced me to a young former dominatrix who practiced her craft while juggling heroin and a 3.9 GPA in college -- and then wrote about it in the memoir "Whip Smart" by Melissa Febos.

This is exactly the sort of thing I like to read. Addiction memoirs -- especially complicated well-written ones -- are my Twinkies hidden under the bed.

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Dec 21, 2011

Veronica Marie rated it:

(There may be a spoiler or two in here – don’t say I didn’t warn you.)

Firstly, let me say that I found Melissa Febos’ WHIP SMART to be extremely well-written and knowledgeable… this is truly an unforgettable read. With only an occasional discordant note, Ms Febos' narrative has a ring of truth that makes WHIP SMART a compelling, thought-provoking, and compassionate telling of human frailty… of human need… of human imperfection. I recommend this book without hesitation.

T More...

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Jan 19, 2011

Rachelfm rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

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Jul 26, 2011

Hat of Nikitich rated it:

Three and a half? Three and three-quarters? Whip Smart was really interesting and, in fact, pretty smart. The author is very articulate, even if you might find her hard to relate to, or like. I had personal revelations of my own while reading it, mostly tangential to the book, but I don't think they would have been quite so clear without the sharp writing.

That said, it does devolve from time to time into maudlin introspection and emotional flogging (no pun intended) that can be difficu More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Sep 17, 2011

Beren rated it:

Hardly "wild and powerful," Whip Smart is far more focused on ex-junkie navel gazing rather than the life of your average dominatrix. Febos is in love with the sound of her own voice, and makes sure that adoration comes through in writing that is both overwrought and overthought. When she talks about other people, the story comes alive; when she talks about how she has a natural born gift of intuition and insight into people's motivations (did you know her mom is a phychologist? No? More...

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Sep 17, 2010

Tiffany rated it:

OK, I really liked this memoir. I read a few reviews that shout "we don't need another boring recap of someone's struggles with drugs/alcohol/insert problem here and how they've overcome" but isn't that the gist of most books? And I'd argue that the topic of this book definitely is NOT boring.

Febos writes about her experience as a dominatrix in NYC in her early 20s. Frankly, I was shocked to learn about some of the things people are into. I mean, this stuff is freak-kay More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Sep 16, 2010

Kristina rated it:

Melissa Febos gives the reader a clear look at the sex industry that she worked in for 4 years. Although she initially had a glamourous, Hollywood-ish view of being a domme and working in a sex industry (she compared it to a David Lynch movie), she gradually realized that the reality was far different. Febos does not treat herself kindly--she exposes all her weaknesses, her foibles, and offers them all up to the reader. She battles thru heroin and cocaine addiction and her addiction to being a d More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 24, 2011

Marichee rated it:

This is an insightful book that takes us into the semi-dark world of professional BDSM. As a professional and successful Dominatrix, Ms Febos shows us how life can get boring, while balancing it with the shock and horror of other people's fetishes. A very intersting look at a world I've only seen as an outsider.

One thing that was super interestng to me - Ms Febos describes what it is like being addicted to heroin and why one would use it in the first place. This was quite eye openin More...

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Nov 21, 2010

Bynumamanda rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

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Sep 03, 2011

Ruth rated it:

I heard the author on Fresh Air and thought I must get this. A book by an academic about her experiences as a Dominatrix and addict. What could be better? On Amazon, there were only two reviews and both gave it 2 stars out of 5. I resisted, then in a weak moment, purchased it. I figured, they must be wrong and it would give me some good Saturday evening conversation. The information about the Dominatrix activity was very interesting. What was most interesting was how strange and routine t More...

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Aug 19, 2011

Rahadyan rated it:

I bought Whip Smart -- Melissa Febos's chronicle of her life before, during and short after she worked as a professional dominatrix -- only a few months after I had left a job of 22 years. That job was certainly not as noteworthy but it defined much of who I was during those years.

I took up the book again after meeting again in person many people I had not seen in 30 years. In meeting my old friends and classmates, I had some revelations about the differences between how others perce More...

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May 16, 2010

Anna rated it:

An enjoyable read - a memoir that fully examines the author's own past and current psychological state, not acting as an expert, but as a genuine search for knowledge, and brutally honest in the telling. In fact, this feels like a more honest version of "A Million Little Pieces" (although time will tell). I felt like there was just the right blend of internal musing and assessment, broken up by interesting and sometimes depressing anecdotes of the author's job as a dominatrix, drug a More...

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Aug 05, 2011

Jennifer rated it:

I read this book because of the interview I heard on NPR with the author, Melissa Febos. I expected it to be more intellectual than it was, and I certainly didn't expect it to really be about the author's struggle with drug addiction and recovery. (I was also a little disturbed to see how many grammatical errors and typos there were in the book!) I can't say that I "enjoyed" the book, because come on, how enjoyable can it be to read about the strange sado/masochist sexual preferences o More...

3 comments like

Sep 16, 2010

Christina rated it:

Funny that I should read two "female domination" books back-to-back, but maybe that's because I purchased them together. The other book -- a novel -- Permanent Obscurity by Richard Perez -- was everything this was not: hilarious and down-and-dirty -- and not meant to be serious "literary" like this one. I liked this book mostly, though I found the writing to be forced and self-consciousness -- like something a fan of Anais Nin would write. There are genuine moments though, an More...

0 comments like (4 people liked it)

Apr 28, 2010

Whitney rated it:

Here's a confession: I've never actually read a memoir before, so I went into Melissa Febos' cleverly titled Whip Smart with complete ignorance. As a result, I'm not sure if the book's half-plot, half-retroactive dime-store psychological self-exploration formula is typical of the genre or not. Either way, I found the real-life narrative of a twenty-year-old college student turned self-destructive sex worker simultaneously engaging, sickening, unflinchingly honest, and enormously annoying.
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0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 10, 2011

Karen rated it:

A really irritating woman talking about an interesting subject. Her narcissism and genuine disdain for everything and everyone she encounters takes all the fun out of it. Not cute. Plus several of the people I know who are current or former sex workers have very valid bones to pick with the way she represents a lot of the work, her fellow sex workers, and the clients. If you are at all interested in kink, do not turn to this book as a window into the world. Too much is inaccurate, dangerous More...

3 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jun 11, 2010

Kelli rated it:

I have always been fascinated with the subcultures that exist all around us. Always up for a good human interest story, it is riveting for me to read about why people make certain choices in their life. Febos is a young college student who finds herself in the clutches of a drug addition and working as a dominatrix in a NYC dungeon. Very honest and hard-edged commentary on her struggles both into and out of the world of drugs and addiction--both her own and her clients'. The author's tendency t More...

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Oct 08, 2010

Raina rated it:

Finally got around to reading this - I bought a copy when Febos came to the Olympia library. And of course, the insight into the world of the dungeons and deeds of the professional dominatrix is fascinating. But what I was really impressed me was the honest way Febos exposed herself, deconstructed the world, and discussed the complexity of life. I especially identified with her relatively trauma-free childhood, her disdain for innocence, her intelligence. Fascinating, and it made me seriousl More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jun 02, 2010

Heather rated it:

I kind of want to give this 5 stars because I sped through it in two days. But it was more that reading Febos' story is like watching a train wreck. Not only was she a dominatrix, but she was a heroin addict, too! How she remembers so much about what she did when she was that doped up, I have no idea. Anyway, both the tale of being a dominatrix and the tale of being a drug addict is so far outside of my normal schema (or any of my friends' schemas) that I was completely intrigued.

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