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A review by knitnetic
Belle de Jour: Diary of an Unlikely Call Girl by Belle de Jour
4.0
This book is precisely what the title claims: the (true) story of the carousing of one of London's high-priced call girls. Originally written in the form of a blog (which won the Guardian's best blog of the year award), the book includes not only explicit tales of Belle on the job, but also stories of how her work affects her personal life.
I really appreciated the lightheartedness of this book -- it was basically a 300 page episode of Sex and the City -- a book which, for the record, I did not enjoy. Though Belle acknowledges that there are those in the sex industry who are genuinely exploited, she makes a good case for legalization (and high taxation) of the legitimate sex trade. Her stories, though explicit, show a human side to customers that are generally villainized in mass media, gently nudging her reader to make their own choices in how they view this (and other) taboos.
Note: I have given this book the grade it would deserve if I had picked it up without having read the first year or so of Belle de Jour's blog. Unfortunately, there is only about 5 pages of new writing if you have read the blog.
Final Opinion: If you've read the blog, skip it. If you haven't, it's a great, fun, beach read.
I really appreciated the lightheartedness of this book -- it was basically a 300 page episode of Sex and the City -- a book which, for the record, I did not enjoy. Though Belle acknowledges that there are those in the sex industry who are genuinely exploited, she makes a good case for legalization (and high taxation) of the legitimate sex trade. Her stories, though explicit, show a human side to customers that are generally villainized in mass media, gently nudging her reader to make their own choices in how they view this (and other) taboos.
Note: I have given this book the grade it would deserve if I had picked it up without having read the first year or so of Belle de Jour's blog. Unfortunately, there is only about 5 pages of new writing if you have read the blog.
Final Opinion: If you've read the blog, skip it. If you haven't, it's a great, fun, beach read.