The Maimie Papers

by Maimie Pinzer

In 1910, a remarkable correspondence began between a wealthy and distinguished Bostonian philanthropist, Fanny Quincy Howe, and Maimie Pinzer, a Jewish prostitute living in Philadelphia and just recovering from morphine addiction. The Maimie Papers is Maimie's side of that correspondence, offerring an unprecedented and still unique account of the life of a woman of the streets and of her inspiring transformation. After a childhood in a wealthy but troubled family, Maimie's struggle for survival began at age 13 following years of apparent incestuous abuse. Her descent led her through reformatories, jails, and hospitals. It also brought her into contact with a sometimes colorful, sometimes grim assortment of people living on the edge, whose miseries and hopes she depicts with a true writer's gift. With the intervention of a devoted social worker and the support of Fanny Quincy Howe-and despite experiences of sexual harrasment-Maimie is able, during the course of her correspondence, to leave prostitution and learn secretarial skills. With these skills-and with her talent for management, her street wisdom, and her compassion-Maimie becomes a kind of self-invented social worker, eventually providing shelter and services to street women in Montreal. The final letters in 1922 find Maimie happily married, mother to two adopted children, intent upon publishing her writing-and as indefatigable as ever. A new afterword by Ruth Rosen follows the elusive vilifying portraits of prostitutes emanating from Hollywood, The Maimie Papers introduces an unforgettable woman with a powerful writer's voice, who captures the present with wit and candor, and recalls thepast without sentiment.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Feminism

496 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1977

Reviews

[Vasha7 · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've been really attracted by this book. It's better than a novel; the letter format gives immediacy, and there's a real sense that Maimie (an actual person) is saying what's on her mind.

One thing that struck me was the passages where Maimie discusses her reluctance to take charity from people who regard it as their "work". Although she is put off by the condescending attitude of the religiously-motivated philanthropists, their feeling that they can dictate how she should dress and when she ought to pray; although it is obvious that they have no conception of the economic reality that she lives, and nonetheless they think they ought to criticize every penny she spends; the real crux of the problem is that she does not want to take assistance from someone unless that person is doing it because they want to help her, her personally, and that is rare. It seems that Mrs. Howe is the only actual friend Maimie has in the world (and she is religiously agnostic). At one point, it appeared that though Mr. Welsh seemed friendly at first, he was just better at seeming than most philanthropists. She was just a "project" to be "saved" for him, as indicated (among other things) by his reading her private letters to other people -- to demonstrate the "work" he was doing.

Overall, the theme I've taken away from reading the first half of the book is that above all, Maimie is seeking independence. Money is important to escape from hunger, cold, and squalor, but she needs to be able to support herself, not as someone's wife, mistress, or charity recipient. That's something that most of the people she encounters plainly don't understand; they assume that a woman should be dependent on family or husband (and assume that she has these! illicit relationships not allowed!). Some of Maimie's early letters have a tone of sheer desperation, but she is able to clearly lay out just how few options she has. Anyone who doubts that a woman needs to have an independent income with fair wages has to read what it's like to live without it.

[Rochelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite reading material is letters written by women about their lives. Miami Pinzer's letters are a marvelous window into the life of women during the first decades of the past century. I was absolutely riveted by this book and so sad to see it end. Maimie's story is deeply personal but at the same time an eloquent example of the dangers of poverty and the inequities suffered by women. These inequities are caused by the unpaid nature of women's work, the criminalization of the only work valued by women at that time (prostitution), and the unequal pay for work traditionally performed by women. For Maimie, these inequities continued even after she received an education that gave her a marketable skill. Her intellect was strong and her intelligence shines through her letters. That a woman with freshman level education wrote them is amazing. Juxtaposed with the attitudes of her brothers and mother, who never supported her financially or mentally, Maimie's attitudes and generosity are almost inexplicable. The only friends she had were strangers who tried to "save" her through their own religion (christianity) and tried to compel her to give up her own religion (Judaism). Hemmed in by ignorance and prejudice from all sides, Maimie chose to love unconditionally in order to help women out of poverty.

[Blaze · Rating 4 out of 5]

An amazing window in a world that is often cast in masculine lighting, the Mamie Paper help us to understand that not all loves can go as planned.

[Judy · Rating 3 out of 5]

These letters from a woman who has been a prostitute to her philanthropic Bostonian lady-friend are fascinating! The correspondence is one-sided, since Mrs. Howe's letters have been lost, but Maimie's letters easily stand alone. It's amazing that this self-educated woman had the drive and self-confidence to pursue her dreams without slipping back into "bad" behavior. Her struggles as a poor woman without a formal education in 1911 are documented. She reveals herself as intelligent, thirsting for both knowledge and a means to be independent and self-supporting. The deprivations that accompanied WWI, especially their effect on poor non-Catholic women in Montreal, are eye-opening. Definitely well-worth the time!

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

This collection of letters is so intricate and detailed, and I feel like out of them you get a deep understanding of the writer of most of them, Maimie. It's amazing to me that in spite of all of the disadvantages she faced -- she's a working-class woman, an immigrant, disabled, with a past seemingly full of unending tragedy -- she refused to play the victim and kept striving and striving to improve her situation, those of those around her, and those of those like her.

There are a lot of individual aspects of these letters that I could pull out and comment on, but I shall try to resist the temptation! However, writing my research essay on them should be fun.

[Tom Leland · Rating 3 out of 5]

What a project. Letters from a one-eyed ex-prostitute to a Boston society lady.
Then contact is lost, with a chance Maimie ended up in Hollywood writing for
magazines. She was a skilled writer, but for me the interest was in her amazing
fortitude in overcoming an uncle's sexual abuse when she was little -- and eventually
founding and running a "home" to "save" girls from prostitution in Montreal. I think
there is a plaque or monument of some sort in that building today. It's long -- I barely
hung on a few times -- but I've very glad I finished it...and you can't help wishing you knew her.

[Luanne Castle · Rating 5 out of 5]

25 years ago, I was supposed to be reading "The Beast in the Jungle" by Henry James for class, but I had started reading The Maimie Papers and couldn't put it down. I read the book night and day for 3 "days." These letters by an unlucky woman who lived over 100 years ago are brilliant and revealing of what it was like to be a woman who is brushed under the rug of society. It's Maimie's determination to educate herself and her sense of right and wrong that makes her as memorable to me today as all those years ago.

[Leslie Oakes]

I really wanted to like this book. But, it was painfully slow in parts. I only made it halfway through.

[Angela Reeves · Rating 2 out of 5]

ok

[Nicole C. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was fascinating. I love reading letters and journals from real, everyday people, as I feel they can whole a sense of place and time like no history book ever could.

Maimie Pinzer was a prostitute at the beginning of the twentieth century, and had become addicted to morphine after losing one of her eyes. She must have cut an unusual figure with her eye patch. The charity workers gave her the name of one Mrs. Howe to write to, a society lady with philanthropic interests. What developed was a lifelong friendship. Unfortunately, Mrs. Howe's letters are no longer extant, but Maimie stands on her own, and you can watch her shyness in letters begin to blossom and become a most admirable character, especially considering all of the adversity she faced.