In my skin: a memoir by Kate Holden

The first words in the prologue are "What do I remember of being a prostitute?". The last ones are "The smile that I give when I talk about it now is, I can feel, nostalgic, provocative. A brightness comes into my eyes. And, I'm told, a hard look."
In my skin explores all the "in-between" of the life of Kate Holden, born in the 1970's, in a "nice" suburb of Melbourne. It is the story of a young girls fall into drugs and prostitution, her family's torment, and her eventual recovery.
A very frank, honest and sometimes shocking real life account of how peer pressure and the desire to "fit in" nearly destroyed a life. Kate came from a normal, loving home, had a good job and a bright future, but her boyfriend's drug use eventually bought on the "I'll just try it once" line. After getting fired from her job for theft to support her new found "habit, she turns to prostitution. Eventually she survives, turns her life around and wrote this amazing story.
This book takes you to a place many of us really don't want to visit. It is certainly not a "light-hearted" leisure read, but it DOES leave you, hopefully, with a new perspective on your own life and the life and glamour?? of an inner-city brothel.
Even though, at times, I found this poignant "adventure" a bit slow and "colourful", it is still a fantastic first-hand insight into a world most know little about.
Tracie