xxstefaniereadsxx's review against another edition
reflective
slow-paced
3.0
I listened to this book on Audible, because it was included with my membership. I usually enjoy memoirs, especially ones with a criminal aspect to it. I think it is a shame that sex work is stigmatized and illegal, but I hate that girls are enticed into sex work by pimps and madams. This was an interesting book. It had never really occurred to me how one gets involved in pimping out people. I suppose after reading this, one can see why the lifestyle would appeal to someone. I personally would not recommend buying this book, but it wasn't disappointing since it was free for me to listen to.
niche's review against another edition
4.0
Morbidly fascinating
I did not expect to like this as much as I did, but the fact that it was a memoir of such an alien life kept me fascinated past the physical, mental, and sexual abuse of such a bleak world. It also helped that most of the details weren't dwelled on for titillation. I think the biggest squick factor might have been that most of the reader highlights and also purchases seemed to imply people were looking for an instructional guide rather than a cautionary tale.
I did not expect to like this as much as I did, but the fact that it was a memoir of such an alien life kept me fascinated past the physical, mental, and sexual abuse of such a bleak world. It also helped that most of the details weren't dwelled on for titillation. I think the biggest squick factor might have been that most of the reader highlights and also purchases seemed to imply people were looking for an instructional guide rather than a cautionary tale.
anuwolf's review against another edition
3.0
My cousin gave me this book to read when I visited them for their Christmas dinner. He liked it, so I thought I would give it shot. I was reluctant to read it because it wasn’t the usual type of literature I enjoy. It sat untouched in my room for a month, and then on the first week of February I decided to give it a shot. It was a long read because it was difficult to keep interested. The book is a memoir, a real life story about a poor boy with an abusive father who runs off to try to become the world’s best pimp. It’s a harsh story, there are no heroes. It was insightful, I learned about a world I never knew and about the decisions some people make. It was full of a variety of slang terms I’d never heard of before in my sheltered life, so it was also educational. It’s a gritty tale, but the writing is not overly captivating and the ending felt rushed -- to be fair though, the author is just telling his story as it is.
dratkos's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
3.5
michael_taylor's review against another edition
4.0
I'd heard about pimp from reading articles by Irvine Welsch. He said that without this book Trainspotting would never have been written.
I see the influences on his work both in terms of content and language. It's a good thing there is a glossary of slang at the back of this book because otherwise I would have been completely lost.
This book starts off with a bang. The writing style is captivating and what happens to young Iceburg Slim is heartbreaking. There's some really poetically written passages about his dreams involving his mother that are so vivid that they linger with the reader long into the book.
The preface does a lot to insulate against the coming grotesqueries. Violence against women, murder, child sexual abuse and the most transparent racism are all on display here.
Iceburg Slim is no saint, nor does pretend to be. At almost every turn he's thinking of new ways to manipulate and coerce young women into whoring for him. It's all presented in a very measured, manner of fact way. Towards the center of the book it sags quite a bit. It's a lot to ask of the reader to endure such constant cruelty. The saving grace is the writing style. Iceburg has a way of describing the worst possible things that one human can do to another and make it readable. Despite all the misery that is going on, this book also finds time for levity. Tonally it shouldn't work, but it does.
I don't think I've ever read anything quite like this before. It's challenging, heartbreaking, revolting and compelling all at once. If you feel like you have the stomache for the content then I would say you should check it out.
I see the influences on his work both in terms of content and language. It's a good thing there is a glossary of slang at the back of this book because otherwise I would have been completely lost.
This book starts off with a bang. The writing style is captivating and what happens to young Iceburg Slim is heartbreaking. There's some really poetically written passages about his dreams involving his mother that are so vivid that they linger with the reader long into the book.
The preface does a lot to insulate against the coming grotesqueries. Violence against women, murder, child sexual abuse and the most transparent racism are all on display here.
Iceburg Slim is no saint, nor does pretend to be. At almost every turn he's thinking of new ways to manipulate and coerce young women into whoring for him. It's all presented in a very measured, manner of fact way. Towards the center of the book it sags quite a bit. It's a lot to ask of the reader to endure such constant cruelty. The saving grace is the writing style. Iceburg has a way of describing the worst possible things that one human can do to another and make it readable. Despite all the misery that is going on, this book also finds time for levity. Tonally it shouldn't work, but it does.
I don't think I've ever read anything quite like this before. It's challenging, heartbreaking, revolting and compelling all at once. If you feel like you have the stomache for the content then I would say you should check it out.
alivira's review against another edition
3.0
This book is seven kinds of messed up, but I guess that's the way it is. Less interesting after the shock value wears off.