Staff Pick
Stoya has made a name for herself in the public sphere through porn, and here she collects her years of fiery, sharp writing to make clear that one's participation in sex work in no way demeans one's intellect. She weaves philosophy and theory into insights from a career in an industry that is both famously romanticized and reviled — refusing to let us get away with lazy caricatures. Even with all that aside, she proves that she's an excellent storyteller with some amazing stories to tell. For example: a pornographic road trip across a rapidly fracturing America that includes UFOs; an erotic homage to famous European red light districts; coming out to the grandma she modeled her stage name after and receiving an unexpectedly delightful reaction; and, perhaps most incredibly, the ;scrawling of the philosopher's Bataille's famously taboo Story of the Eye on a dress before wearing it for months to collect her own fluids. Stoya is a different kind of public intellectual/artist/pornographer, and here she proves she's a force to be reckoned with. Recommended By Cosima C., Powells.com
Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
Philosophy, Pussycats, & Porn is a series of essays, blog posts, and stories surveying more than a decade of poignant journalistic accounts from internationally recognized writer, actor, and pornographer Stoya. Stoya provides crucial examinations of systemic biases toward sex workers and how sexuality is reflected in society. Stoya often points her journalistic lens inward, providing us with personal, illustriously detailed stories of her life, her collaborators, and how she has built a flourishing media haven in the face of a culture that is still learning how to handle public discourses on sex work.
Synopsis
First full-length collection of Stoya's writings pertaining to sex workers, their rights, and personal anecdotes detailing the life of this robust creator.