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In My Skin

A Memoir

By Kate Holden

(6)

| Paperback | 9781841959313

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Critics

A beautiful loser makes good

In My Skin by Kate Holden Canongate £9.99, pp286 The substance-abuse memoir has become such a staple that it's difficult to remember a time when this kind of soul-flaying confessional shocked us. Kate Holden tells her story with enough grimy detail t ... (read full critics)

guardian.co.uk published on Sat, 25 Sep 2010

The real deal

In My Skin: A Memoir by Kate Holden 286pp, Canongate, £9.99 Sex and redemption memoirs are now so ubiquitous that the very idea of them seems achingly hackneyed. A tradition stretching from Fanny Hill to The World of Suzie Wong to the more recent Bel ... (read full critics)

guardian.co.uk published on Sat, 25 Sep 2010

2 Reviews

In My Skin is a memoir about a former Heroin addict who turned to prostitution to support her habit.
Kate Holden is a University graduate who was introduced to Heroin, became dependent on the drug, attempted several unsuccessful attempts to stop her addiction, and became a prostitute. Through ... (continue)

In My Skin is a memoir about a former Heroin addict who turned to prostitution to support her habit.
Kate Holden is a University graduate who was introduced to Heroin, became dependent on the drug, attempted several unsuccessful attempts to stop her addiction, and became a prostitute. Through her days as a prostitute, she moved from working the streets to becoming a full time worker in a brothel. And it was here where she remarkably regained her dreams, remembered herself, and finally found the motivation to become clean again.
Kate Holden is a very articulate writer, expressing her thoughts and reflections very accurately and successfully conveying herself to her readers. I never understood why it was so difficult for drug addicts to become clean but i was offered a very brief glimpse and insight to the challenges facing a drug addict. I was truly quite dumbfounded and have new found respect for those who managed to kick their habits.
A major part of the book was focused on the writer's days as a prostitute which offered fascinating views into the lives of sex workers. However, i grew quite bored towards the end of the book because the accounts usually revolved around the same theme. I was more interested in what was the final straw that led to the resolution of becoming clean and i was surprised that it wasn't a huge revelation or miracle that occurred but rather a gradual accumulation of events that surreptitiously gained pace and took hold of the person.
Kate Holden has a strong grasp of the language and her flair for writing and honest thought-provoking reflections actually at times provide justifications for her decisions in life. I would highly recommend this book.

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The Underdog said on Nov 14, 2009 | Add your feedback

Senusal memoir depicting a deep-thought and intellectual woman working and living in St.Kilda Melbourne

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HENRY said on Apr 30, 2008 | Add your feedback