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31st out of 499 books
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How to Make Love Like a Porn Star: A Cautionary Tale
by
Jenna Jameson,
Neil Strauss (Goodreads Author)
When the stewardess brought me off the plane in a wheelchair, I lowered my head. I was too scared to even look at my father. I didn't want to see the disappointment and horror on his face. All that hate I had accumulated for him over the years, all the resentment against him for not understanding what I was going through, just released with the tears.
"So, where ...more
"So, where ...more
Hardcover, 579 pages
Published
September 1st 2004
by ReganBooks
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I think this is a story of survival. (Why do people always look at me funny when I admit to having read this?) Being the queen of her business that she is, I read it wanting to know what made her tick. "Sex" is the popular answer to that. But that's really not the truth. She admits to loving sex, but she dispels the myth that porn stars are sex addicts who want to get paid for their source of pleasure. She's very honest about admitting how bad the sex industry can be. The fa...more
Here is one weird thing about this book: It's about six hundred pages long, but about a third of that is pictures.
Here's another thing about this book: during intense passages about things like rape, there will be pictures of porny-ass ol' Jenna with a gallon of lipstick on showing up her butt, or something. Which could totally work in two ways: either as total, 'you are reading this for the porniness' exploitive cash-in, or in a meta, 'here is the reality, looks how different it is...more
Here's another thing about this book: during intense passages about things like rape, there will be pictures of porny-ass ol' Jenna with a gallon of lipstick on showing up her butt, or something. Which could totally work in two ways: either as total, 'you are reading this for the porniness' exploitive cash-in, or in a meta, 'here is the reality, looks how different it is...more
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The book had some predictable content but far less than you would imagine. The narrative is candid (sometimes too much so) and a light, quick read. There are some excerpts from Jenna's diary which looked so genuine that I would be very surprised if they forged it. It's also amazing to see how her dad took to the news of her becoming a porn star - very well in fact, although she came from a reasonably "normal" family. Her relationship with her brother is also pretty special.
S...more
S...more
Okay. Well. It was interesting. What else can I say about this book? I found myself frustrated because it felt like it was written by, well, someone who never quite took school as a priority and started stripping and having sex on film for money. Which makes Jenna Jameson sound worse than I think she actually is, but... that's how the book reads.
The story of her life is a bit predictable with the standard troubled childhood and life of trials and hardships, but to Jenna's credit, sh...more
The story of her life is a bit predictable with the standard troubled childhood and life of trials and hardships, but to Jenna's credit, sh...more
I am actually not a huge fan of biographies, yet here I am reviewing my second biography. Granted, I read this a couple years ago, but still. So, I've always been kind of fascinated with Jenna Jameson. She's pretty notorious in the porn industry and has made a huge name for herself through heavy marketing.
The book basically takes you through her life thus far. She talks about how her upbringing led her to be a wild teenager and how that ultimately led to her porn career. She writ...more
The book basically takes you through her life thus far. She talks about how her upbringing led her to be a wild teenager and how that ultimately led to her porn career. She writ...more
Dont let the 600 page length of this book fool you, a lot of it is pictures, photocopy journal entries, and fluent but childish writing style. Still, story wise this is indeed interesting as hell in my opinion, but I'm in to this kind of thing. If you care not for stripper/porn star stories you should obviously not read this, but that's what's right up my alley so I take it for what it is. It was suggested to me that everything she says in this book is a lie but I have no idea, I take it at f...more
Before you judge me, let me just say that I chose this book as a beach read prior to my two week vacation in Mexico. That being said, it was pretty much a disappointment. It passed the time and required very little of my vacation brain (which was my goal) but it still seemed flat. I expected it to be super juicy and scanalous but it was pretty boring. I give it three stars just for the fact that it served its purpose and the chapters about the inner workings of the industry itself were entertai...more
This was an easy-to-read captivating tell-all. Not sure if it's 100% accurate or if it's a memoir written in the James Frey style as there are a few instances of fact conflicts and contradictions within its pages (which also happens frequently in The Bible and many people still believe it's literal, so who am I to decide?). I suggested to Oprah on Twitter that this may be a great book club read as it is the classic Cinderella story that ends with the happy ending and an empowered woman on top (p...more
One of the first things my friend did when i reached LA for a holiday was shove a gigantic book into my hands and tell me to read it. It turned out to be the autobiography of porn star Jenna Jameson, and i was instantly hooked - i finished the 592 pages in four days while on holiday and doing a bunch of other things! Obviously if you’re a bit of a prude, you’re not gonna enjoy this book, but i’m not exactly a fiend for porn and i couldn’t get enough! It takes you through the hard times in Jenna’...more
It was cleverly written, but I don't think it was written by her exactly. I feel bad making the assumption that a once drugged up stripper turned porn star/diva couldn't write that well, but it is written in the first person and it's not referred to as an autobiography, either. Plus it says Jenna Jameson with some guy who wrote for the New Yorker.
It was hot though. Cause there was sex in it, that's cool. In a real way and not to knock romance novels, but in a non-romance novel way.
It was hot though. Cause there was sex in it, that's cool. In a real way and not to knock romance novels, but in a non-romance novel way.
I'm not even really sure why I started to read this book. I love biographies about strong women who come out as winners in their life...but I wasn't sure that being a #1 porn star was what I considered being a winner. I see now, that I was wrong.
A profession, is just that. It's what you do to pay the bills and hopefully find some enjoyment as you do it. Could I do what Jenna did? NOT ON YOUR LIFE!! Am I envious of her seriously flat stomach and trim waist? You bet, but I'm not ...more
A profession, is just that. It's what you do to pay the bills and hopefully find some enjoyment as you do it. Could I do what Jenna did? NOT ON YOUR LIFE!! Am I envious of her seriously flat stomach and trim waist? You bet, but I'm not ...more
I think if you're going to invest the money and time into reading this book, you shouldn't be ashamed of reading it in public! The most embarrassing part of reading this book for me was that I got it as a birthday present from my fiance's parents after he told them I wanted it -- and they had no idea that it was a biography when they bought it!
I read a lot of other reviews that critique Jenna's writing in this book, but seriously? She's a porn star! Of course she didn't graduate hig...more
I read a lot of other reviews that critique Jenna's writing in this book, but seriously? She's a porn star! Of course she didn't graduate hig...more
Maybe it's all Howard Stern's fault - but ANYTHING Porn, that's not really porn, I just gotta read. Jenna really truly is a good person and her memoir is both funny, sad, touching, and totally interesting from start to finish. She's a straight shooter and tells her story, just the way it happened. There's a bit too much packaging: goofy comics, lots and lots of photos - but hey, she'll do anything for her fans. Would love to have a meal with her one day.
So first thing, this is not a how-to manual on how to do it like Jenna. Next, WOW what a horrible life. I know she is loaded beyond reason and beautiful, but her history makes me want to hug her and tell her I'm proud of her, it's seriously pitiful. It has a lot of pictures that make it distracting to others and maybe around 5 filthy stories that would make some people blush. I would not call this a porn book, there are some vampire fic books that have more actual sex, Jenna is just totally ...more
I got some sideways looks reading it in waiting rooms and my mom wanted to know why I wasn't reading "something else", and I'm sure there's a large segment of the world that would not enjoy reading this and would find it vulgar and think it shows what society is coming to... and I'm not even saying they're wrong. I don't feel like it was a waste of my time to read it though. It's more interesting and serious than you would think judging by the cover. I'm surprised at some of t...more
Came away wanting to read more about her dad's life. He seemed much more interesting from a memoir or novel perspective. She obviously should be congratulated for not so much of her accomplishments but for her survival. She is probably 1 in a million especially these days with more porn, more internet porn, more wanna-be's, and more predators and traffickers lurking everywhere. Seemed honest but the contribution by co-author Strauss likely made this compelling, well-paced and readable. I wo...more
First, a tangent:
Believe it or not, it was for Neil Strauss and not Jenna Jameson that I picked up this book. He's great trashy reading, a real talent for Lifestyles Of The Odious Yet Compelling. The Game was one of the funniest books I read last year – hell, ever - it was a totally bizarre story to live through, and Strauss was the right guy to tell that story. Sure, the veracity is suspect since everybody wants to make themselves look good – and Strauss, being a master pickup artist hims...more
Believe it or not, it was for Neil Strauss and not Jenna Jameson that I picked up this book. He's great trashy reading, a real talent for Lifestyles Of The Odious Yet Compelling. The Game was one of the funniest books I read last year – hell, ever - it was a totally bizarre story to live through, and Strauss was the right guy to tell that story. Sure, the veracity is suspect since everybody wants to make themselves look good – and Strauss, being a master pickup artist hims...more
This was a strange book.
I had sat down to read a few pages of this book, and before I knew it I was 300 pages deep. This book was undeniably addicting at first, and was certainly a page-turner, but it soon took a turn for the worse.
To begin with, Jenna is clearly lacking in her writing skills, which wasn't surprising. On top of that, this book is filled with unnecessary things. A good chunk of this book is made-up of dialogue between her, her father, and her brother. It w...more
I had sat down to read a few pages of this book, and before I knew it I was 300 pages deep. This book was undeniably addicting at first, and was certainly a page-turner, but it soon took a turn for the worse.
To begin with, Jenna is clearly lacking in her writing skills, which wasn't surprising. On top of that, this book is filled with unnecessary things. A good chunk of this book is made-up of dialogue between her, her father, and her brother. It w...more
After reading this book i am exhausted so i cant imagine what Jenna Jameson must have felt living this life...Its beautifully constructed story of someone who is faulted to no ends but at the same time genuine and even at times funny. How she has able to survive i put down to plain luck and same goes for her family. Shes blubbering idiot concerning choosing men for herself and at the same time has iron willpower to get ahead in life and make something of herself. Celebrity gossip is juicy and se...more
This was a book club read and I have to say that I was a little scared to pick it up. Not only because I'm totally unfamiliar with the world she lives in, but also because there are like 1000 naked pictures of her in the book and you can't possibly read this anywhere out in public.
Overall I thought it was interesting. She certainly doesn't hold back and there were a couple of things that totally grossed me out. In fact there were a lot of things that totally grossed me out, but a few ...more
Overall I thought it was interesting. She certainly doesn't hold back and there were a couple of things that totally grossed me out. In fact there were a lot of things that totally grossed me out, but a few ...more
The title has nothiong to do with "How to", but is a compelling and well written and unapologetic autobiography of the most successful porn starlet of all time. It traces her beginning from being gang raped when she was 17 to eventually working her way up as a self sufficient and successful CEO of her own company. What emerges that is remarkable is that it is eventually a journey towards middle classness, a journey from dysfunction to social rebellion to social convention all on her ...more
I kept wanting to read Jenna Jameson's autobiography, co-written by Neil Strauss, but felt sort of lame for being curious. It turns out lots of people are curious to read a memoir by the most famous star in adult entertainment, because this book has both sold a lot of copies and been on the New York Times bestseller list. Keep in mind that this book details quite a bit about stripping, drug use, life in Las Vegas, sexual assault, and rock star name dropping. However, if you are a memoir junkie l...more
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Molly's review pegged this--filthy and fabulous, and another story of a smart woman making bad choices. Honestly, the books was a lot less lascivious (I have no idea if I spelled that right, but you know what word I'm trying to use) than I expected. Jenna has a good business sense and, I think, a pretty healthy view on sex. She can separate sex and love, which is pretty important distinction to make. I kept rooting for her to make better choices when it came to men and drugs, though, but she...more
I read most of this, skipping the interview style stuff in the middle. It was interesting, but it just proved what I already thought, that there are very few women who get into porn who aren't either into drugs, were abused as children or had a bad relationship with their father. I find it interesting that she considers herself blessed, and it happy where her choices took her. Yes she has billions of men and women lusting after her, but so do actresses. She was lucky she made it, but at what pri...more
We really need a system to Down Mod a book this dreadful. I never finished it, even though I was trapped on an airplane with it. No matter it got abandoned in LAX!
Jenna Jameson's book was really, really long...of Harry Potter length! I was surprised by the intimate details she shared, not just about sex, but about rape, death, drug use and trying to mend her problems with her family. I viewed some of her choices as poor - and she was well-aware of the mistakes she had made. Yet, I would have liked to see her learn form her mistakes instead of making the same ones over and over again specifically with poor choices of men and repeated drug use. I think ...more
***WARNING...SOME MAY FIND THIS REVIEW OFFENSIVE***
Jenna Jameson attempts to write. Where do I begin? First of all, there is a difference between an interesting story and a well-executed story. When both elements are there, you have a great story. Her life story is definitely not boring, but her life in story-form is delivered very poorly, not to mention it's about 300 pages too long.
I must add that I knew, kind of, what I was getting into: I knew she didn...more
Jenna Jameson attempts to write. Where do I begin? First of all, there is a difference between an interesting story and a well-executed story. When both elements are there, you have a great story. Her life story is definitely not boring, but her life in story-form is delivered very poorly, not to mention it's about 300 pages too long.
I must add that I knew, kind of, what I was getting into: I knew she didn...more
Holy moly! Don't expect some literary genius here. Just expect to start reading this and and then never want to stop. Yes, Jenna's childhood was not super but the fact that she made it out on top at the end just goes to show you what a determined woman she was and still is. She is brutally honest about the porn industry and admits it can be harder for men than women to break into the industry. My favorite part was when she was interviewed by Howard Stern and lied about the fact that she got rape...more
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Jenna Jameson (born Jenna Marie Massoli on April 9, 1974) is an American pornographic actress and entrepreneur who has been called the world's most famous porn star and "The Queen of Porn".
She started acting in erotic films in 1993 after having worked as a stripper and glamour model. By 1996, she had won the three top newcomer awards from pornographic film industry organizations. ...more
More about Jenna Jameson...
She started acting in erotic films in 1993 after having worked as a stripper and glamour model. By 1996, she had won the three top newcomer awards from pornographic film industry organizations. ...more
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