Chicken: Self-Portrait Of A Young Man For Rent (2003) - Plot & Excerpts
I received this book from Goodreads First Reads. Thanks!Chicken is a slice of sparkling, sizzling, up-and-down nightmare of an adventure. Perhaps the best thing about it is that it is very well told. I like that there is a common childhood, some usual 17-year-old hormones pumping, and nothing really too drastic, other than the first encounter the author finds himself in when he goes to Hollywood for college. It is, I do agree, a bit unbelievable that with $27 in his pocket, and a relatively normal family, he finds that he is "homeless." Either the definition of homeless needs to be revised, or, most likely, there was much more going on than the author is allowing himself to tell. I like that there are no sweeping judgements about any group of people (perhaps other than the fact that all rich women like to see their hunky boyman naked (well, and who can blame them?). I like that though he may not love being a "sex technician," the author enjoys sex and most of the sexual encounters, though this doesn't mean he loves it all.As for the encounters (tricks) described, none of them seemed too weird or unusual or freaky or fringe to me. All pretty in line with the human condition. I am not sure if it was meant to be shocking. Perhaps will be shocking to those who thought Fifty Shades of Gray was groundbreaking; I doubt it will seem shocking or freaky to anyone who is remotely familiar with the realities of human sexuality and everything related to it.Recommended to those who like well-written memoirs, fast-paced accounts, fried chicken, nuns, and chocolate-covered strawberries.
The writing of this book sparkles. It's the only book I've read by a worker in the sex industry that got me inside their heads, made me see the industry, what they did and how they managed to do it and remain both dignified and humble when sex for money is such a taboo. It isn't at all titillating but neither doesn't it shy away from graphic descriptions. What truly lifts the book and marks it out as quite different from others in this genre, is the author's empathy for his clients, his desire to make them happy and fulfilled and not just sexually satiated. He does his job to the best of his ability, it is not just a way to extract money from people. The descriptions of some of the clients are among the most bizarre characters you will ever read about. The author is talented writer, an empathetic communicator and obviously skilled where it counts.I am surprised no one has made a film of the book. The story of a middle-class boy, abandoned by his family, attending a Catholic college roaring around town on a Harley going from job to job as a (heterosexual) prostitute is interesting enough. But with the ending, of how the author is rescued (almost) by the love of a good woman, is just destined to make a good film one day. Brilliant book. Really a five-star read.Rewritten March 13th, 2013.
What do You think about Chicken: Self-Portrait Of A Young Man For Rent (2003)?
It doesn’t seem right to devour a book in a single day when it took fifteen years to write, but devour it I did. This book will speak to anyone who has battled shame, blamed themselves for their own abandonment, or didn’t feel worthy of a better life. When you’re at the “bottom of the rock” and surrounded with bottom feeders there’s nonjudgemental camaraderie that can consume you. But through it, you see David’s struggle for normalcy, his compassion for his clients, and his not-yet developed trust of his instincts which lands him in some of the most horrific of circumstances. I would have liked a little more detail of his physical healing after surviving an attack, but other than that, he plants us straight into his brain and does not disappoint. I chose the audiobook version of the book and I’m glad I did. David’s performance of each character made them tangible and real. The different dialects and personalities came through in a single word or insecure stutter.
—Bonnie Jean Feldkamp
This one was very good read...but the ending left to much unanswered for me. I thought through the entire book this man had been sexually abused by his father, with the way he talked about such things. He had so much anger inside twards people. Now I loved his writing style but the ending seemed very rushed to me. Unfortunatly I will always be wondering why he had all this anger and hur inside him. He never really tells you anything except that his father never really cared to much to be bothered with him ect..I will have to search and see if he wrote any other books that answer my questions.
—Love
