I really wanted to like this book, reallly i did.
Maybe it was me giving it high hopes, i dont know, but this book
just fell really flat for me.
I thought even though it was a true story that it would have been a bit more comical
and like double life living. unfortunately that wasn't really the case.
it was boring, and not really attention grabbing.
I felt it was more the author just expressing her constant fears about being a stripper while she attended college to be a librarian.
i felt that there was no real meat or substance to the book, just a lot of woe is me, i'm a poor college student who's also a stripper in dive joints.

This book had real promise based on the title alone, Just fell flat the whole book.

This book tells the true story of a library student who lives a double life by working in the only job that has any chance to help her pay off her graduate school loans, stripping. During the day she goes to classes and does group projects and in the evenings she drives to a nearby town to appear on stage and dance on stage. The author makes clear that she was in no way, other than financially through the ruinous student loan system, coerced into doing this work and she reflects on how she feels about being a sex worker.

This might be interesting enough on it's own but the author is able to consider her own privledge in race, social class, and upbringing. This insight is combined with an analytical but sensitive anthropologist's eye wherein she views those around her: other strippers, club patrons, library school students and professors, and her own family and potential dates in ways that explore their thoughts, motivations and opinions.

Since graduating and later quitting stripping she has become what Mother Jones would describe as a "Hellraiser" working for social and economic justice issues in libraries and a mother of two.

I would recommend this book for anyone who has experience in either the library or stripping professions and to those who are interested in taking a close look at how people different than themselves live and think.

I was provided an eArc of this book through NetGalley in exchange for this honest review.

3.5 stars - this succeeded in being a somewhat entertaining memoir. One thing I have to give the author credit for was her willingness to tell the story. My issue with the book is that most of the stories were pretty mild and the book moved at a relatively slow pace, especially early on. Overall though, I prefer this over an exaggerated or sensationalized memoir that will attempt to trade lies for more buys and readers.

Another thing I’m grateful for is the author put any of my personal dreams of having a second career as a librarian to rest. It sounds nearly impossible to find meaningful, adequately paying work in the field.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced copy of this to read and review!

The title felt a little bit like a click bait title but I was ready to get involved. I wasn’t expecting to learn so much. This is not a salacious click bait book, it’s interesting, clever and deeply personal. I would recommend a name change of the book but this is a must read.

I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley.

Kristy Cooper is leading a double life. In this autobiography, Kristy relays her story about working her way through graduate school stripping. The pay was better than waitressing; however she is worried about anyone finding out due to the stigma that job brings. She was careful to keep that life, and her librarian life (what she was studying for) completely separate.

The book highlights multiple issues in our culture in the States. The stigma of stripping, the overpricing of education in our society, the lack of resources - or want to help - when it comes to the education system. She also discusses student loan debt and the high cost of it and the crushing feeling of being under it. The issues in the librarian system were very interesting to learn about. I had no idea it was such an underserved, government entity but I should not be surprised. In today's society, reading and education do not seem to the be in the forefront of life and libraries will suffer.

While the title and blurb had me heavily intrigued, this book was unfortunately thin on actually compelling elements. One of the struggles with writing a memoir is finding a way to make normal life interesting - this book only succeeds at the act in fits and starts.

An interesting premise, and very eye catching cover. But I found myself struggling to get through this book. I think the writing style was not quite right for my tastes. I felt like the book took too long to make the connections between Ms. Cooper's two careers. For the most part, it was really a memoir of her time as a stripper. That's fine, but it was not exactly what I was expecting.

I appreciate the honesty and vulnerability that the author demonstrated by writing and publishing this story. That being said, there were a few parts I struggled with, thinking in terms of her being a mother, as am I. But, that is surely my own biases coming to surface, and it is good for me to continue to read things that challenge those.

While this was not really what I expected, and unfortunately not a book that really grabbed me and drew me in, it is still an interesting idea and a good read for someone who wants to know more about stripping or sex work in general.

3.5 ⭐️

I wasn’t particularly sure what to expect from this book but I was certainly more than a little intrigued by the title.

I considered that it would be filled with humorous stories and anecdotes from the author, based on her real life experiences, but it actually made for quite sad and stark reading.

It throws you into the deep end straight away without much introduction and the author states that stripping became “an itch I needed to scratch.” I never really understood why that was the case other than she met a stripper and thought it seemed like a good way to make money to make dents in her quite substantial student debts. This idea of it being an itch to scratch didn’t really make much sense to me since she clearly did have some issue with people finding out her secret identity and although she did not feel ashamed to get her goods out for money, she also did not appear to enjoy it either?

Don’t get me wrong, I found this book to be an interesting read and it made sense of course that many strippers had not actually chosen this path because of drug addiction, social situation, background, because they had no other option or because they had been forced into it. Many strippers are from privileged backgrounds and are there because they want to be and do not require “saving” as the author explains. What was also interesting was the discussion about other forms of sex work and the current laws around this. The author is not for decriminalising all sex work, and instead talks about things that could be put in place to make trafficking more difficult and making the industry a safer place.

The final part of the book I found to be at odds with the rest. The author goes into a bit of a strange political rant about library activism. Yes she’s also a librarian and I get that, but it was written in a different style to the rest of the book and it just felt weird and tacked on.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher Olivier for the ARC in return for an honest review.

In Kristy Cooper’s memoir we follow her career from stripping through her masters degree to eventually advocating in local library science politics fourteen years later. Cooper, like most students in higher education, needed to take out loans to meet her aspiration to be a librarian and this is where the journey begins!

This memoir definitely satisfies a lot of curiosity around the balance and nature of sex work fitting into daily life. Cooper’s educational and financial situation is relatable to many young Americans, so it’s easy to understand her decisions without associating stigmas. We hear about the routine before, during, after work, romantic relationships, career shifts and struggles, and general concerns and demands of the industry.

When she was a beginner, you feel like you’re there with her. When she grows through the industry, we see her grow into herself more. And as she transitions full time into her desired field, there’s a lot of raw differences and pay offs. The book feels chronological with the former half consisting of more narration and dialogue, while the latter half is developmental of her transition to higher level library science.

I liked the last few chapters a lot because of how educational they were as a conclusion. Lots to be said for how technology has changed both industries she worked in and she mentions plenty of resources that help show how sex work fits into current affairs.

There’s something to be satisfied or learned in here for all kinds of readers. Definitely worth a read! The writing isn’t amazing, but stay for the story. Life is weird and her story is a fun, fast one.

I Was a Stripper Librarian by Kristy Cooper

Full feature for this title will be posted at: @queensuprememortician on Instagram!

I wasn't sure what to expect from this book. It was however, a well told, often funny account of how the author supplemented income whilst studying in the US for a Librarian degree, by stripping in a club. It was interesting to see how the two very different worlds mixed due to the experiences of the author. Very interesting.

Kristy Cooper provides a complete story of the struggles of a librarian earning an expensive master’s degree, but only being able to find part-time library work to gain experience. As much as this memoir is about Cooper becoming a stripper to earn enough money to pay back her student loans, it is more about the state of libraries with tight budgets and part-time professional staff who earn minimum wage and do not have health benefits. Cooper uses her gumption to fight for librarians to earn a livable wage. Recommended for librarians and library board members. The only complaint is the subtitle of the book: from cardigans to G-strings which fires straight into the negative stereotype so often applied to librarians. At least the subtitle does not refer to cat sweaters.

This was a fantastic autobiography. Stripping is still a taboo subject today, even though pole dancing and stripping is becoming more and more popular. I think this really helped break away the stigma and help the reader see the perspective of the world through new eyes. I do pole dancing for fun and exercise so I know a lot of men and women that work in the industry and some of them are the most incredible people you will ever meet. Please read this book. You won’t regret it!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.

As a librarian myself I found this so incredibly interesting. I related so much to struggle of getting my first job following graduating. Working multiple jobs to try and gain experience in the industry and earn money is something I myself had to do, but my second job happened to be in a bank and not stripping. Thankfully the Higher Education system in Scotland meant I didn't quite as much debt and no end date for paying off the small amount I had to borrow to complete my Masters.

I loved hearing her stories from both stripping and working as a librarian. I also loved that it helped to disprove the librarian stereotypes I truly hate! I myself have never shushed anyone but have been shushed. I don't think you become a real librarian until this happens haha.

The research she helped with in the information needs of strippers sounds incredibly interesting and I hope I can find this article to have a read! Information need and information literacy is where my interests lie research wise.

I really enjoyed getting to read this!

I was so sold when I heard the premise of this book! It's definitely an attention grabber that's really relatable and somewhat unexpected. I found the stripper aspect of this book really fascinating and it's important to get perspectives on sex work and sex workers. I feel as though there's a common misconception that sex work is really degrading and therefore sex workers should be degraded and this book really highlights the personal choice aspect of all of those things.

Oh my everything. This is genuinely one of the best memoirs I have ever read. Everybody should read this book immediately.

First off, Cooper's personal story is touching and I really empathized with her throughout the story. First hand accounts of sex work always really hit me and this book was no different. I loved how she detailed her thought process and explained her life at the time. There was no sugar coating, just raw honesty, and the emotion that the author put into this book shone through so clearly

I loved all of the characters that Cooper introduced from both sides of her life. From the repeat members frequenting the strip club to the classmates in grad school, everyone who was included really added to the story and served a purpose. Cooper is a talented writer and I would love to see more from her.

The last chapter was filled with resources on this topic and I very much intend on reading some of the recommended books.

Thanks, NetGalley for the advanced copy!

I enjoyed reading this book. One of the things I most enjoyed is how she included not only the stories of being a stripper but the harm that can be done, most importantly the dangers of sex work and how little there is from the law for protection. Learning the culture of sex work was enlightening and a bit surprised with what can actually happen in clubs. The female relationships were aggressive and it would be a struggle to do that every day. I was even more surprised by the male strippers that were described.

I'm sure many people have thought about stripping to make extra money. The author was very relatable to me because I am also a librarian. I felt the frustration of finding a library job after spending so much money on my degree and not paying enough to pay for the college that was required to get the job. (FYI look into Public Service Loan Forgiveness) I bartending and it isn't the same as stripping but the horrible men you have to deal with are very similar with the way they behave.

DNF. Didn’t like writing style. Picked up and put down few times. Just wasn’t for me. Thanks for chance to read this.

I Was A Stripper Librarian by Kristy Cooper is the eye-opening real story of a grad student who begins to work the pole in order to ease the burden of student debt.
Along the way, she learns a lot about human nature and herself.
It’s an insightful look into two worlds that intersect with each other in more ways than one.
I loved the honesty and vulnerability.
Five Stars

I went in to this thinking it was going to be superficially entertaining with some shock tactics and wild stories of bad behaviour and debauchery. Instead it was original, engaging, and thought provoking. It is a story written from a unique female perspective; the voice being intelligent, unapologetic and matter-of-fact. The writing was sharp and it held it’s own. I found it intriguing and entertaining from start to finish. 5 stars.