A Midwest preacher’s daughter with a sophisticated academic pedigree, Viva could have pursued any career, but chose to become a stripper. This personalized tour of her milieu offers a unique perspective on a thriving industry that is largely condemned or ignored, while painting portraits of women who are passionate, smart, and entrepreneurial. With language that is by turns gritty and glorious, she preaches new paradigms regarding the sex industry and the women who work in it. Part coming-of-age story, part Portland, Oregon, love letter, Magic Gardens makes a valiant case for following one’s dreams, whatever they may be.
From the back cover:
Celebrated “Diva of the Demimonde [who writes] a love song to life on the shday side” (Katherine Dunn, “Geek Love”), Viva Las Vegas, the award-winning author of “Magic Gardens” and “The Last Days of My Left Breast” returns with a collection of popular writings from her days as an editor of Exotic Magazine. A born evangelist who never lets the grass grow under her feet, Viva’s “Gospels” traverse red-lit Paris nights, rock’n’roll’s backstages, New York City on 9/11, and the seedy wonderland of Portland’s underground.
From the back cover:
A Midwest preacher’s daughter with a sophisticated academic pedigree, Viva could have pursued any career, but chose to become a stripper. This personalized tour of her milieu offers a unique perspective on a thriving industry that is largely condemned or ignored, while painting portraits of women who are passionate, smart, and entrepreneurial. With language that is by turns gritty and glorious, she preaches new paradigms regarding the sex industry and the women who work in it. Part coming-of-age story, part Portland, Oregon, love letter, Magic Gardens makes a valiant case for following one’s dreams, whatever they may be.
From the back cover:
Celebrated “Diva of the Demimonde [who writes] a love song to life on the shday side” (Katherine Dunn, “Geek Love”), Viva Las Vegas, the award-winning author of “Magic Gardens” and “The Last Days of My Left Breast” returns with a collection of popular writings from her days as an editor of Exotic Magazine. A born evangelist who never lets the grass grow under her feet, Viva’s “Gospels” traverse red-lit Paris nights, rock’n’roll’s backstages, New York City on 9/11, and the seedy wonderland of Portland’s underground.
