My neighbourhood independent bookstore happened to have a copy of this relatively new book by former escort Charlotte Shane titled An Honest Woman. (It’s new in paperback, and came out in hardcover sometime last year.)
I really enjoyed it. A few excerpts:
"Though my escort friends and I were scornful of clients who imagined our work was purely pleasurable, it could be a blast. […] I took these escorts’ word for it that their clients treated them better than customers and bosses in other contexts. So many of them said so, it couldn’t have been just a few flukes. And all of us agreed that clients treated us better — exponentially better — than most of the men we fucked for free.”
I hope that the escorts who are reading this can report that their boyfriends or husbands treat them at least as well as we clients do, if not better.
"[My] work illustrated on a regular basis that marriage was a cynical, manipulative deal maintained through liberal amounts of lies if not wholly undertaken in dishonesty. […] Marrying someone to seal in sexual commitment was like putting ice in a Styrofoam cooler and believing it would never melt. Or maybe it was more like putting ice in a pre-heated oven.”
Here’s a memorable description of Shane's one and only performance at a bachelor party:
"The men were in high spirits when I arrived, rowdy in the best way. They roared and cheered over my every move; they were a performer’s dream. No one touched me except the groom and only when I told him to. They were current and former military men, and while I have no sentimental notions about the armed forces, they were perfect gentlemen. I had the time of my life. […] I was welcomed into a zone of masculine joy and fellowship, embraced by the occupants, and made delirious by their exuberance. There was the wholesome reception of sex, too, its frictionless presence among platonic laughter and celebration, no judgment or shame within that circle of grace. I had so much fun. I think they all had so much fun."
Not all of Shane’s experiences with clients were that positive, of course. Some of them were awful. But she does seem to have a mostly favourable impression of guys who pay for it.
The book mostly focuses on her ten-year relationship with one regular client who she calls Roger. Below is a summing-up from the end. (There’s a SPOILER in this passage, so you might want to skip it if you’re seriously considering reading An Honest Woman.)
"I don’t think Roger wronged me once. I have no grudges, and I don’t think anything about our arrangement was unfair. In fact, it was one of the most honest and equitable and respectful relationships I’ve had. But Roger took away one of the biggest decisions anyone has ever taken from me when he kept me from his death. That was his right. Even if he hadn’t been paying me, or if he hadn’t been married, that would have been his right. I know he did the best he could, and that it was better than most people’s best would be. But we didn’t get to say goodbye. It’s a wound that will last forever.”
I don’t know about you, but I get a little emotional reading that. Maybe you have to read the whole book for the full impact. Or maybe I find it affecting because I myself am in a years-long regularship with one escort.
Despite the above-quoted negative assessment of marriage, the book ends with Shane happily married. And good for her — and her husband. If her description of her guy is accurate, then it seems like it might actually last.
I really enjoyed it. A few excerpts:
"Though my escort friends and I were scornful of clients who imagined our work was purely pleasurable, it could be a blast. […] I took these escorts’ word for it that their clients treated them better than customers and bosses in other contexts. So many of them said so, it couldn’t have been just a few flukes. And all of us agreed that clients treated us better — exponentially better — than most of the men we fucked for free.”
I hope that the escorts who are reading this can report that their boyfriends or husbands treat them at least as well as we clients do, if not better.
"[My] work illustrated on a regular basis that marriage was a cynical, manipulative deal maintained through liberal amounts of lies if not wholly undertaken in dishonesty. […] Marrying someone to seal in sexual commitment was like putting ice in a Styrofoam cooler and believing it would never melt. Or maybe it was more like putting ice in a pre-heated oven.”
Here’s a memorable description of Shane's one and only performance at a bachelor party:
"The men were in high spirits when I arrived, rowdy in the best way. They roared and cheered over my every move; they were a performer’s dream. No one touched me except the groom and only when I told him to. They were current and former military men, and while I have no sentimental notions about the armed forces, they were perfect gentlemen. I had the time of my life. […] I was welcomed into a zone of masculine joy and fellowship, embraced by the occupants, and made delirious by their exuberance. There was the wholesome reception of sex, too, its frictionless presence among platonic laughter and celebration, no judgment or shame within that circle of grace. I had so much fun. I think they all had so much fun."
Not all of Shane’s experiences with clients were that positive, of course. Some of them were awful. But she does seem to have a mostly favourable impression of guys who pay for it.
The book mostly focuses on her ten-year relationship with one regular client who she calls Roger. Below is a summing-up from the end. (There’s a SPOILER in this passage, so you might want to skip it if you’re seriously considering reading An Honest Woman.)
"I don’t think Roger wronged me once. I have no grudges, and I don’t think anything about our arrangement was unfair. In fact, it was one of the most honest and equitable and respectful relationships I’ve had. But Roger took away one of the biggest decisions anyone has ever taken from me when he kept me from his death. That was his right. Even if he hadn’t been paying me, or if he hadn’t been married, that would have been his right. I know he did the best he could, and that it was better than most people’s best would be. But we didn’t get to say goodbye. It’s a wound that will last forever.”
I don’t know about you, but I get a little emotional reading that. Maybe you have to read the whole book for the full impact. Or maybe I find it affecting because I myself am in a years-long regularship with one escort.
Despite the above-quoted negative assessment of marriage, the book ends with Shane happily married. And good for her — and her husband. If her description of her guy is accurate, then it seems like it might actually last.
