"Bare" is a revealing tale

There are books that draw you into the story and don't let go,the type of books that you can't put down. "Bare: on Women, Dancing, Sex, and Power," a novel by Elisabeth Eaves, is that type of book.\n"Bare" throws the reader into the underground world of strip clubs. It takes the reader down the dark hallways of a peep show, past the booths patrons watch the dancers in, and right into the dressing room. It takes the reader into the life of the dancer, studying her emotions and motivations for dancing naked in front of strangers every night.\n"Bare" studies the motivations of three different women: how they got into stripping, how it affected their lives, and how, if they did, get out of the industry. The author speaks extensively about how she perceived her body as a weapon that could be used against men. When in college she determined that the behavioral mores of society shouldn't bind her. She got a job stripping at a Seattle landmark, the Lusty Lady. This strip club operated as a peep show, with all the women dancing on a stage separated from patrons by a glass window. Eaves believed the men watching the women were below her, an attitude shared by many of the dancers.\nEaves told the stories of two other dancers that also worked at the Lusty Lady, one who had her life consumed by stripping, and one who used it as a crutch in her relationships. The descriptions of these women was so vivid I felt that I knew them for years.\nI was fascinated by this book. I never gave much thought to strippers, and if I did, I assumed they were drugged out and looking to make a quick buck. I don't think I will ever assume that about a stripper again. The author was a college graduate when she began taking off her clothes for cash. She used the job to save money for her graduate school education. She walked into the sex industry, and she walked out.\nHowever, I also felt sorry for the women who were not able to walk away. Some women discussed in "Bare" couldn't walk away, even when it meant their personal relationships and day careers were destroyed. Women left husbands over stripping, and husbands left wives. Girlfriends and boyfriends split up.\n"Bare" was an insightful book that opened up the complex world of the strip club to me. It explained how women could share what is most private with strangers on a daily basis, and it detailed the consequences of their actions. For an engrossing read, I highly recommend "Bare"