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Dancing for the Devil: One Woman's Dramatic and Divine Rescue from the Sex Industry
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385 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 2, 2014
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
January 21, 2016
Spoiler alert: I'm not a Christian.
However, I do respect those who are. What really struck me about this book was the author's statement in the introductory note, that she believes in telling the whole gory unpleasant truth of her experiences, because it is important for other people to realize that God loves you anyway....regardless...of the horrible things you've done. She is willing to let her life serve as an example of that. That's not an easy thing to do. It takes guts.
The next thing that struck me was her honesty. Her willingness to look deep within and discover WHY she had done these things and then again to share that with strangers.
It's her sense of humor that totally sold it though. The author comes across as human. She's not really preaching...just telling us her experiences. At times she comes across as REALLY ENTHUSIASTIC about how floored she is by the experiences she has. Telling us that she knows that we'll most likely think she's crazy. Perhaps that's also what made this more palpable for me.
In the end, I found some of her post conversion stories a bit much for ME to believe. But honestly, I think that her message of love and acceptance is important for EVERYONE to read. Christian and non-Christian alike. Especially Christians though, because (again perhaps I'm naïve) but I was honestly surprised by the reticence she got from fellow Christians about ministering to the women still in the sex industry. Again, I'm not a Christian, but the author's mission of love without judgment is something I can certainly back whole heartedly.
However, I do respect those who are. What really struck me about this book was the author's statement in the introductory note, that she believes in telling the whole gory unpleasant truth of her experiences, because it is important for other people to realize that God loves you anyway....regardless...of the horrible things you've done. She is willing to let her life serve as an example of that. That's not an easy thing to do. It takes guts.
The next thing that struck me was her honesty. Her willingness to look deep within and discover WHY she had done these things and then again to share that with strangers.
It's her sense of humor that totally sold it though. The author comes across as human. She's not really preaching...just telling us her experiences. At times she comes across as REALLY ENTHUSIASTIC about how floored she is by the experiences she has. Telling us that she knows that we'll most likely think she's crazy. Perhaps that's also what made this more palpable for me.
In the end, I found some of her post conversion stories a bit much for ME to believe. But honestly, I think that her message of love and acceptance is important for EVERYONE to read. Christian and non-Christian alike. Especially Christians though, because (again perhaps I'm naïve) but I was honestly surprised by the reticence she got from fellow Christians about ministering to the women still in the sex industry. Again, I'm not a Christian, but the author's mission of love without judgment is something I can certainly back whole heartedly.
November 11, 2014
Readers need to be forewarned that while the publisher and author did an amazing job of presenting such a horrific, explicit topic without profanity or overly graphic descriptions, this book is not what I consider suitable for all readers. I would caution that this for mature audiences only.
This memoir was mentally taxing to read at times. I found myself wondering how a young woman from such a loving, stable home would end up in such hellish environments. Anny answers that question and more, with her life story. This was a very eye opening book and heart wrenching at the same time.
I quickly learned that the term "high-end" stripper is an oxymoron.
Anny shows her readers the rock bottom devastation of this industry, by slowly peeling away layers of her life and allowing a glimpse into what the industry is truly like. It is dark and evil beyond what I could even begin to imagine.
As a parent, it was gut-wrenching to read what her parents went through as Anny muddled in and out of clubs, breaking their hearts and their trust repeatedly. The story turns from hopeless to inspirational, as readers see how God began working in Anny and now ministers through her, to others who have fallen into the sex industry.
This memoir was mentally taxing to read at times. I found myself wondering how a young woman from such a loving, stable home would end up in such hellish environments. Anny answers that question and more, with her life story. This was a very eye opening book and heart wrenching at the same time.
I quickly learned that the term "high-end" stripper is an oxymoron.
Anny shows her readers the rock bottom devastation of this industry, by slowly peeling away layers of her life and allowing a glimpse into what the industry is truly like. It is dark and evil beyond what I could even begin to imagine.
As a parent, it was gut-wrenching to read what her parents went through as Anny muddled in and out of clubs, breaking their hearts and their trust repeatedly. The story turns from hopeless to inspirational, as readers see how God began working in Anny and now ministers through her, to others who have fallen into the sex industry.
November 27, 2014
Amazing story! As Christians, what messages are we sending to others? Are we judging and criticizing or are we sharing God's unconditional love?
October 27, 2024
Eye opening (and so sad) how a well-off child gets into the sex industry. Great story of her exit and recovery also though.
September 17, 2014
“Dancing for the Devil” by Anny Donewald with Carrie Gerlach Cecil, published by Howard Books.
Category – Memoir Publication Date – September 02, 2014
The sub-title to this book is, “One Woman’s Dramatic and Divine Rescue from the Sex Industry”. This is not a book that contains sexual content or strong language, although the subject matter lends itself to graphic description and explicit language the authors, at the request of the publisher, tells her story in a language that is acceptable to even the most prudent reader. Kudos to Howard Books and the authors. If you are looking for sleaze this is not your book, in fact, the book could very well be classifieds as a religious book.
Most people believe that those participating in the sex industry come from broken homes, have been abused, or are mentally deficient. This may be true in many cases but certainly not in the case of Anny Donewald. Anny came from a very normal family, a mother and father that were affluent, sup portative of their children, and religious. The story is a true account of Anny’s decent into the world of women, many times not of their own choosing; find themselves trapped in an industry that is very difficult to leave. Although most women abhor what they do, they have trouble finding a way to support themselves outside of stripping and being (a polite term) escorts. They also find it difficult to turn away from the “easy” and amount of money that they can earn. They also find themselves living among the high rollers, the sports figures, the movie moguls, and record artists.
Anny, who has reached the bottom of her life, miraculously calls for help from God. Her prayers are answered and she starts on a bumpy road to recovery. She feels that she is directed by God to help those who like herself feel trapped in the sex industry, and she has founded a Christian, non-profit, organization called “Eve’s Angels” to minister to not only the women but the men in the industry.
Category – Memoir Publication Date – September 02, 2014
The sub-title to this book is, “One Woman’s Dramatic and Divine Rescue from the Sex Industry”. This is not a book that contains sexual content or strong language, although the subject matter lends itself to graphic description and explicit language the authors, at the request of the publisher, tells her story in a language that is acceptable to even the most prudent reader. Kudos to Howard Books and the authors. If you are looking for sleaze this is not your book, in fact, the book could very well be classifieds as a religious book.
Most people believe that those participating in the sex industry come from broken homes, have been abused, or are mentally deficient. This may be true in many cases but certainly not in the case of Anny Donewald. Anny came from a very normal family, a mother and father that were affluent, sup portative of their children, and religious. The story is a true account of Anny’s decent into the world of women, many times not of their own choosing; find themselves trapped in an industry that is very difficult to leave. Although most women abhor what they do, they have trouble finding a way to support themselves outside of stripping and being (a polite term) escorts. They also find it difficult to turn away from the “easy” and amount of money that they can earn. They also find themselves living among the high rollers, the sports figures, the movie moguls, and record artists.
Anny, who has reached the bottom of her life, miraculously calls for help from God. Her prayers are answered and she starts on a bumpy road to recovery. She feels that she is directed by God to help those who like herself feel trapped in the sex industry, and she has founded a Christian, non-profit, organization called “Eve’s Angels” to minister to not only the women but the men in the industry.
December 24, 2024
Mixed feelings about this book: on one hand it contains a wonderful story of a woman whose life was changed by God; on the other hand, the bulk of it is the author's poorly communicated distant summaries of her years in the sex industry, followed by some really bad theology.
Her life story is interesting but not well told. The biggest flaw is that Donewald fails to see foundational issues in the bad choices she made and blame-shifts. It's almost offensive at the end when she talks about her final step of peace being forgiving all the people who she thinks helped cause her problems. In truth, only she caused her issues.
The fact that her father was a successful NCAA basketball coach is given too much space in the book--instead she should have focused on analyzing her distant parents, their rules about secrecy and how they failed to ever really stop her bad teenage choices. Instead they didn't step in to provide consequences and acted as if God would magically work it all out, which might have been an attempt to help her grow up but instead Donewald rebelled by getting heavily into sex and drugs.
It's also part of the book's bad theology, where "everything happens for a reason" (no it doesn't) and God "allowed me to choose (evil), and now He was using it for good." That means you're never personally responsible for the consequences of your actions. Life (and faith and scripture) is a little more complicated than that. God can cause all things to work together for good, but there are some qualifiers on that. And her Reformed thinking even implies that God approved of her stripping and having random sex because the end justifies the means.
The life-changing incident of sexual abuse by one of her father's players when she was age 13 is something that is glossed over quickly and with so few details that the reader is unsure how to take it. We know players, dad/coach and daughter were all riding home on a team bus; it was dark, the black player stopped her as she walked past and started to touch her, she did not scream or push him away, and supposedly no one else saw or heard anything. It's even unclear how sexual it got. Then, without any more specifics, it's months later and apparently the two have been having sex regularly but she doesn't give any specifics. It's all vague enough that we can't really figure out what her involvement was or why she kept going along with one of her father's players beyond her feeling that if dad found out he'd kill the guy.
So the rest of her life is spent chasing after sex to control men, bedding many and getting pregnant by a number of black strangers. She has an abortion that she seems to want to justify, though she later regrets it (this is not the strong pro-life message that she may think it is, even explaining later all the ways she tried to abort her third pregnancy). There's just something off in how she seems to focus on justifying the bad she does but doesn't provide full stories when needed.
Only the last 20% of the book is about her conversion and then instantaneous prophesying or hearing God speaking to her. She is caught up in the spirit world and even at one point appears to justify fortune tellers. It quickly becomes somewhat anti-Christian in her poorly considered theology that tries to claim Jesus would love strippers and not condemn them nor ask them to give up their jobs. She even goes on a rant about how Jesus would never "carry a picket sign." Seriously? Does she not know the story of Christ in the Temple overturning the tables? He had a large pro-revolutionary side that stood up for what was right even if it hurt people's feelings. And in terms of accepting sinners, He told every one of them to "go and sin no more." Love? Yes. Acceptance of sin? No.
Her writing, "Your Father in heaven is going to love you no matter" what you do is simply not scriptural. It's a distortion to say you can continue to do bad things under the freedom of "grace." It's pretty clear there is a judgment day coming in which He will turn away some that call Him Lord because of what they did. The problem is that modern Christianity rarely wants to preach those verses.
In the end she preaches "love" to strippers but fails to understand that often love hurts. Parental love, Godly love, Christian love are all more than just feelings and allowing self-destructive women to get away with selling their bodies for sex. Often times the greatest love is to force others to stop doing what they are doing--which is something her parents never did for her when she was a child, which led to years of bad choices.
The writer tries to make her coach father a hero but her parents are not to be deified. They had alcohol in their home although they claimed to be upstanding Christians, and in my view it was Anny Donewald's sneaking drinks at a pre-teen age that started her destructive path. One set of small bad choices and shameful cover-ups lead to larger issues when she continues to make self-destructive choices. How does she not see that in her own book nor address it?
The book also should be seen a condemnation of the entire organized sports industry. While Donewald is focusing on the sex clubs she worked for, the real evil was going on in college athletics where criminal athletes are protected by coaches, donors, school leaders, and the media. She gives a couple of examples of where fans call for the destruction of a coach who holds a player accountable for doing something illegal or immoral. No wonder her dad was so secretive. American society should be just as ashamed of the putrid moneymaking machine that has become college athletics as it is of the illegal sex industry.
What this book needed was a better cowriter, someone with an objective view. Instead Donewald had her cousin help, which ended up allowing a distorted perspective and little introspection. What God has done in her life is worth telling but it needs a better form than this.
Her life story is interesting but not well told. The biggest flaw is that Donewald fails to see foundational issues in the bad choices she made and blame-shifts. It's almost offensive at the end when she talks about her final step of peace being forgiving all the people who she thinks helped cause her problems. In truth, only she caused her issues.
The fact that her father was a successful NCAA basketball coach is given too much space in the book--instead she should have focused on analyzing her distant parents, their rules about secrecy and how they failed to ever really stop her bad teenage choices. Instead they didn't step in to provide consequences and acted as if God would magically work it all out, which might have been an attempt to help her grow up but instead Donewald rebelled by getting heavily into sex and drugs.
It's also part of the book's bad theology, where "everything happens for a reason" (no it doesn't) and God "allowed me to choose (evil), and now He was using it for good." That means you're never personally responsible for the consequences of your actions. Life (and faith and scripture) is a little more complicated than that. God can cause all things to work together for good, but there are some qualifiers on that. And her Reformed thinking even implies that God approved of her stripping and having random sex because the end justifies the means.
The life-changing incident of sexual abuse by one of her father's players when she was age 13 is something that is glossed over quickly and with so few details that the reader is unsure how to take it. We know players, dad/coach and daughter were all riding home on a team bus; it was dark, the black player stopped her as she walked past and started to touch her, she did not scream or push him away, and supposedly no one else saw or heard anything. It's even unclear how sexual it got. Then, without any more specifics, it's months later and apparently the two have been having sex regularly but she doesn't give any specifics. It's all vague enough that we can't really figure out what her involvement was or why she kept going along with one of her father's players beyond her feeling that if dad found out he'd kill the guy.
So the rest of her life is spent chasing after sex to control men, bedding many and getting pregnant by a number of black strangers. She has an abortion that she seems to want to justify, though she later regrets it (this is not the strong pro-life message that she may think it is, even explaining later all the ways she tried to abort her third pregnancy). There's just something off in how she seems to focus on justifying the bad she does but doesn't provide full stories when needed.
Only the last 20% of the book is about her conversion and then instantaneous prophesying or hearing God speaking to her. She is caught up in the spirit world and even at one point appears to justify fortune tellers. It quickly becomes somewhat anti-Christian in her poorly considered theology that tries to claim Jesus would love strippers and not condemn them nor ask them to give up their jobs. She even goes on a rant about how Jesus would never "carry a picket sign." Seriously? Does she not know the story of Christ in the Temple overturning the tables? He had a large pro-revolutionary side that stood up for what was right even if it hurt people's feelings. And in terms of accepting sinners, He told every one of them to "go and sin no more." Love? Yes. Acceptance of sin? No.
Her writing, "Your Father in heaven is going to love you no matter" what you do is simply not scriptural. It's a distortion to say you can continue to do bad things under the freedom of "grace." It's pretty clear there is a judgment day coming in which He will turn away some that call Him Lord because of what they did. The problem is that modern Christianity rarely wants to preach those verses.
In the end she preaches "love" to strippers but fails to understand that often love hurts. Parental love, Godly love, Christian love are all more than just feelings and allowing self-destructive women to get away with selling their bodies for sex. Often times the greatest love is to force others to stop doing what they are doing--which is something her parents never did for her when she was a child, which led to years of bad choices.
The writer tries to make her coach father a hero but her parents are not to be deified. They had alcohol in their home although they claimed to be upstanding Christians, and in my view it was Anny Donewald's sneaking drinks at a pre-teen age that started her destructive path. One set of small bad choices and shameful cover-ups lead to larger issues when she continues to make self-destructive choices. How does she not see that in her own book nor address it?
The book also should be seen a condemnation of the entire organized sports industry. While Donewald is focusing on the sex clubs she worked for, the real evil was going on in college athletics where criminal athletes are protected by coaches, donors, school leaders, and the media. She gives a couple of examples of where fans call for the destruction of a coach who holds a player accountable for doing something illegal or immoral. No wonder her dad was so secretive. American society should be just as ashamed of the putrid moneymaking machine that has become college athletics as it is of the illegal sex industry.
What this book needed was a better cowriter, someone with an objective view. Instead Donewald had her cousin help, which ended up allowing a distorted perspective and little introspection. What God has done in her life is worth telling but it needs a better form than this.
July 26, 2016
Absolutely life changing. Excellent writing style, I felt as if I were going through life with Anny.
Being from the GR area and attending MSU in Lansing gave me a real feel for the journey.
Courageous and Authentic Anny wins the prize.
Thank you for sharing your courage and incredible awareness. This also truly helps when raising teens and realizing they have their own journey. LOVE THEM WHERE THEY ARE. Love and kindness prevails!
Being from the GR area and attending MSU in Lansing gave me a real feel for the journey.
Courageous and Authentic Anny wins the prize.
Thank you for sharing your courage and incredible awareness. This also truly helps when raising teens and realizing they have their own journey. LOVE THEM WHERE THEY ARE. Love and kindness prevails!
September 20, 2021
There was one thing this book did very well, and two reasons I will give for not recommending it to anyone to read.
Throughout this book Anny Donewald gives a clear and even helpful depiction of depravity. She saw this first in her high school dating relationship to a “bad boy” when she talked of the darkness within herself desiring that in him—“darkness begets darkness,” she said. This to me was so profound, and even lead me to reflect more accurately on past desires and decisions.
Later she talked about the way sinners rationalize sin by categorizing it with names that feel justified (p228). Describing how under the perfect wrapper of her well toned body was actually rotten fruit, broken and hollow on the inside (p245, 246). Even noticing how a change of heart leads to physical changes in appearance (p281).
Anny sees clearly the dead nature of humanity, fallen in sin, apart from Christ.
I thought reading this book may gain me helpful perspective of others’ experiences, instead the detailed descriptions of Anny’s experiences gave me images in my mind to wrestle with and fight from meditating on. Though she grasps depravity well, I think this account of it is more detailed than helpful. Aside from this one positive understanding of the human condition, most of her other theological thinking is rooted in experience and emotion lacking understand of the God of the Bible and His proclamations of Himself (and then from that, His call and command for His people).
Throughout this book Anny Donewald gives a clear and even helpful depiction of depravity. She saw this first in her high school dating relationship to a “bad boy” when she talked of the darkness within herself desiring that in him—“darkness begets darkness,” she said. This to me was so profound, and even lead me to reflect more accurately on past desires and decisions.
Later she talked about the way sinners rationalize sin by categorizing it with names that feel justified (p228). Describing how under the perfect wrapper of her well toned body was actually rotten fruit, broken and hollow on the inside (p245, 246). Even noticing how a change of heart leads to physical changes in appearance (p281).
Anny sees clearly the dead nature of humanity, fallen in sin, apart from Christ.
I thought reading this book may gain me helpful perspective of others’ experiences, instead the detailed descriptions of Anny’s experiences gave me images in my mind to wrestle with and fight from meditating on. Though she grasps depravity well, I think this account of it is more detailed than helpful. Aside from this one positive understanding of the human condition, most of her other theological thinking is rooted in experience and emotion lacking understand of the God of the Bible and His proclamations of Himself (and then from that, His call and command for His people).
December 28, 2017
Her honesty without being graphic about the sexuality that she endured. She was very humble and admirable for opening up as she did.
Anny really talked the most about herself and her father throughout this especially. I really love learning about how her upbringing was. She was and is truly blessed to have a father who cares so much about her and parents who didn't look down on her but always tried to help her despite her choices.
I really liked her story about her neighbor who made wolf sounds. THe imagery with that really added to the whole thing and made a lot of sense. Also, learning about what she did in Ohio with the picketing issue was really awesome. I never heard of that at all and to know what God did to lead her there was cool!
I did shed a few tears. This is not really a laughing story. I mean, the girl went through some tough things.
Beautifully done. I really am glad with the outcome of this story.
Anny really talked the most about herself and her father throughout this especially. I really love learning about how her upbringing was. She was and is truly blessed to have a father who cares so much about her and parents who didn't look down on her but always tried to help her despite her choices.
I really liked her story about her neighbor who made wolf sounds. THe imagery with that really added to the whole thing and made a lot of sense. Also, learning about what she did in Ohio with the picketing issue was really awesome. I never heard of that at all and to know what God did to lead her there was cool!
I did shed a few tears. This is not really a laughing story. I mean, the girl went through some tough things.
Beautifully done. I really am glad with the outcome of this story.
February 17, 2024
This is serious account of the trauma people in the sex industry have encountered and live daily. It is heart wrenching. It is told with sensitivity and as much decency as possible. The good that ultimately prevailed now is in Eve's Angels, a ministry borne out of the author's compassion for the sex workers in their brokenness. It is one of love and of accepting the individual. Basically, it is the idea that we can't change people but God can. We are called to love and minister to their needs. In the sex industry, trauma is the driving force that leads people to such lifestyles. They are trafficked, maligned, unloved, hollow, addicted to drugs and alcohol to escape their reality, just empty and hopeless. They wear a facade but hurt underneath. But each person is a person, not a freak and Anny has a great handle on that fact and trains others in the Eve's Angels ministry, former sex workers and average church goers.
The majority of the book tells Anny's story. Interesting read.
The majority of the book tells Anny's story. Interesting read.
November 17, 2018
A truly profound spiritual journey about someone lucky enough not to become a statistic, thanks to a loving family. 99.5% of people who work in the sex industry have been abused in their childhood and they need a way out. Eve's Angels are hope for a different life.
The book talks a lot about the stripping life. I wonder what her relationship with her siblings was like. She explains the tumble down the rabbit hole of addiction quite well and soon we see how the dancing and drugs are a vicious circle. Very interesting how dancers are lured by 'grooming' into the trade. I guess if you aren't that interested in money and bling, it offers protection because the wolves have nothing to offer...
The book talks a lot about the stripping life. I wonder what her relationship with her siblings was like. She explains the tumble down the rabbit hole of addiction quite well and soon we see how the dancing and drugs are a vicious circle. Very interesting how dancers are lured by 'grooming' into the trade. I guess if you aren't that interested in money and bling, it offers protection because the wolves have nothing to offer...
November 26, 2014
(Reviewer's note: I received, upon request, a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher, Howard Books - a division of Simon & Schuster, in exchange for my honest review. vmls)
Fame... one's own or that of a friend or family... and the price that we are willing to pay to protect that fame, coupled with being sexually abused as a young teen set young Anny Donewald on a course... on a journey... of self-destruction that very nearly claimed her soul forever.
Dancing with the Devil tells the heart-wrenching story of a young woman caught up in the world of drugs, sex trafficking, prostitution and trade and her journey to and through that dark, dangerous world that has claimed literally tens of thousands of lives... many to the point of death and many to a life in which death would have been a welcome release from the hell on Earth they found themselves in.
It begins innocently enough... amateur night at a small time strip club. A few bucks... some free drinks are the 'prize'... and 'stories' to tell your friends later ... just another Saturday night, right?
But, wait... that wasn't the beginning of Anny's long dark night - a night that would last for years. No, for Anny the darkness began the first time she was abused by one of the players on her father's college basketball team.
For far, far too many women, their own journey into darkness began - will begin - the same way. Sexually abused at a young age by, not a stranger, but someone known... someone they are close to. Someone they trusted. And like Anny, their guilt and shame over what had been done to them made their own abuse a secret. One, as Anny says, had to be kept at all costs!
For Anny, that night was the beginning of a nightmare that seemed would never end. Guilt and shame overwhelmed her, robbing her of self-esteem, self-worth... robbing her of hope. And just when Anny feels that everything is lost... that she has used up all her chances at life... she has lost everything and everyone... save one... she ever loved or cared about... and she has finally hit rock bottom... and there is nowhere left to go...
A spark inside Anny refuses to die and a tiny voice inside her... a whimper almost lost in her dark despair... "help me... please!"
And God hears that plea... that tiny prayer... and He answers! God picks up Anny and touches her in such a soul-deep way that only our Creator... our Father... our Healer... our Redeemer... can.
Even after all the things Anny has done... after all the times that she turned away from God... all the times she set aside what she had read in the Bible... been told by friends... the messages she heard in church...
Even after all the times Anny turned her back on God... when she finally called out to Him.... He answered. Without hesitation... without condemnation... without any conditions... God answered Anny.
He lifted her up from the darkness and showed her light. He showed Anny his purpose for her.
That moment marked the beginning of Anny's next journey... one of salvation and redemption... one of hope and a message. A journey that would set her on a path of ministry that would come to touch many, many lives... and bring the message of Christ our savior to other lost souls. A message of love... of hope... of grace and mercy to countless 'lost souls', because this was Anny's calling.
It hasn't been an easy journey and I think Anny would be the first one to tell you that her journey is far from over.
At one point in the book, Anny relates something Jesus said to her. "Don't let people tell you who I am; let me show you who I am."
Anny doesn't tell us who Jesus is. She shows us. Her amazing story... from her 'fall from grace' all those years ago to where she is now... her salvation and redemption... the ministry known as Eve's Angels that she began... is an amazing testimony of God's love and of His grace and mercy.
Anny, through God's grace and with the support and encouragement of her cousin Carrie, tells an amazing, riveting and at times heart-stopping story of her journey through darkness and her divine rescue from the sex industry. Anny's open, frank words lay bare a world of depravity... a world no one wants to acknowledge exists... a world that isn't spoken of in polite company and only obliquely referenced in churches. A world that makes us squirm in our seats and change the television channel.
But more than that, it is a testimony of God's amazing grace and healing... and His unconditional, never-ending, never changing love. It is a reminder that we are all His children and there is nothing we can do... no hole so deep or dark or depraved that we find ourselves in... that He can't lift us out of.
Anny Donewald is living proof of that. She is also proof that the 'cycle' can be broken. That is part of the message of Eve's Angels, the ministry that she founded.
It doesn't matter how you got where you are. God will bring you home.
Dancing With The Devil is one of those rare reads that is hard to put down. It is told in such a compelling manner and voice that one could easily finish the book in a single sitting. I recommend this book without reservation.
Dancing For The Devil should be on everyone's 'must-read' list!
Veronica Marie Lewis-Shaw
(writing under a large mushroom, somewhere in the Pacific Northwest)
Fame... one's own or that of a friend or family... and the price that we are willing to pay to protect that fame, coupled with being sexually abused as a young teen set young Anny Donewald on a course... on a journey... of self-destruction that very nearly claimed her soul forever.
Dancing with the Devil tells the heart-wrenching story of a young woman caught up in the world of drugs, sex trafficking, prostitution and trade and her journey to and through that dark, dangerous world that has claimed literally tens of thousands of lives... many to the point of death and many to a life in which death would have been a welcome release from the hell on Earth they found themselves in.
It begins innocently enough... amateur night at a small time strip club. A few bucks... some free drinks are the 'prize'... and 'stories' to tell your friends later ... just another Saturday night, right?
But, wait... that wasn't the beginning of Anny's long dark night - a night that would last for years. No, for Anny the darkness began the first time she was abused by one of the players on her father's college basketball team.
For far, far too many women, their own journey into darkness began - will begin - the same way. Sexually abused at a young age by, not a stranger, but someone known... someone they are close to. Someone they trusted. And like Anny, their guilt and shame over what had been done to them made their own abuse a secret. One, as Anny says, had to be kept at all costs!
For Anny, that night was the beginning of a nightmare that seemed would never end. Guilt and shame overwhelmed her, robbing her of self-esteem, self-worth... robbing her of hope. And just when Anny feels that everything is lost... that she has used up all her chances at life... she has lost everything and everyone... save one... she ever loved or cared about... and she has finally hit rock bottom... and there is nowhere left to go...
A spark inside Anny refuses to die and a tiny voice inside her... a whimper almost lost in her dark despair... "help me... please!"
And God hears that plea... that tiny prayer... and He answers! God picks up Anny and touches her in such a soul-deep way that only our Creator... our Father... our Healer... our Redeemer... can.
Even after all the things Anny has done... after all the times that she turned away from God... all the times she set aside what she had read in the Bible... been told by friends... the messages she heard in church...
Even after all the times Anny turned her back on God... when she finally called out to Him.... He answered. Without hesitation... without condemnation... without any conditions... God answered Anny.
He lifted her up from the darkness and showed her light. He showed Anny his purpose for her.
That moment marked the beginning of Anny's next journey... one of salvation and redemption... one of hope and a message. A journey that would set her on a path of ministry that would come to touch many, many lives... and bring the message of Christ our savior to other lost souls. A message of love... of hope... of grace and mercy to countless 'lost souls', because this was Anny's calling.
It hasn't been an easy journey and I think Anny would be the first one to tell you that her journey is far from over.
At one point in the book, Anny relates something Jesus said to her. "Don't let people tell you who I am; let me show you who I am."
Anny doesn't tell us who Jesus is. She shows us. Her amazing story... from her 'fall from grace' all those years ago to where she is now... her salvation and redemption... the ministry known as Eve's Angels that she began... is an amazing testimony of God's love and of His grace and mercy.
Anny, through God's grace and with the support and encouragement of her cousin Carrie, tells an amazing, riveting and at times heart-stopping story of her journey through darkness and her divine rescue from the sex industry. Anny's open, frank words lay bare a world of depravity... a world no one wants to acknowledge exists... a world that isn't spoken of in polite company and only obliquely referenced in churches. A world that makes us squirm in our seats and change the television channel.
But more than that, it is a testimony of God's amazing grace and healing... and His unconditional, never-ending, never changing love. It is a reminder that we are all His children and there is nothing we can do... no hole so deep or dark or depraved that we find ourselves in... that He can't lift us out of.
Anny Donewald is living proof of that. She is also proof that the 'cycle' can be broken. That is part of the message of Eve's Angels, the ministry that she founded.
It doesn't matter how you got where you are. God will bring you home.
Dancing With The Devil is one of those rare reads that is hard to put down. It is told in such a compelling manner and voice that one could easily finish the book in a single sitting. I recommend this book without reservation.
Dancing For The Devil should be on everyone's 'must-read' list!
Veronica Marie Lewis-Shaw
(writing under a large mushroom, somewhere in the Pacific Northwest)
July 16, 2019
What a fascinating story and a brilliant read. this is a story of sex for sale, drugs and debauchery at hits damndest, Following abuse at 13 years of age she embarked down the road of personal hell where women are both trapped and trafficked, where sexi is sold, itsd an insiders view to the seedy side of the sex industry, from both stripper to pole dancer where nothing comes easy, a place of secrets never to be told together with an eventual journey of healing.
December 28, 2022
Overall, it wasn’t a fantastic read but it also wasn’t a terrible read. There were parts in the book where I felt like I couldn’t put it down and just had to keep reading and then there were other parts of the book that I felt like they dragged on and on and were next to impossible to get through. It definitely was a humbling book that will remind you not to just assume everyone has it easy just because of their background.
September 14, 2022
Crazy to think how much she went through in such a short period of time. Worth the read if you like diving into the lives of others, especially ones who experience trauma and are able to make something good come out of it.
July 25, 2021
Really really Christian but amazing story
March 28, 2023
I found out that this woman is a liar who lied about her own parents in order to extort money. Shameful!
June 18, 2025
Good read, quite a life this lady had and how she overcame so much trauma. She should be so proud of herself.
November 10, 2014
Anny Donewald with Carrie Gerlach Cecil in her new book, “Dancing for the Devil” published by Howard Books gives us One Woman’s Dramatic and Divine Rescue from the Sex Industry.
From the back cover: All that glitters is not gold.
An explosive memoir of transformation from a high-end stripper and escort who hit rock-bottom, turned to God, and left the sex trade to found Eve’s Angels, a ministry reaching out to women in the sex industry.
Growing up as the daughter of an NCAA Championship-winning basketball coach and a stay-at-home mom, Anny Donewald had a seemingly blessed childhood. Then, at thirteen, one of her father’s players sexually abused her, and Donewald embarked on a path toward self-destruction.
When Donewald was convinced to compete in an amateur night at a strip club, she found herself drawn into a world of drugs, money, and flesh peddlers in Michigan and Chicago—and eventually Las Vegas’ hottest XXX clubs. But the fantasy of fistfuls of hundred dollar bills quickly turned to the reality of bloodstains on bathroom floors and nights with customers in presidential suites at luxurious hotels. At an emotional breaking point and pondering the termination of her unborn son, Anny reached the gates of her personal hell. There, she found God.
Then, this long-legged, fiery blonde fought to free herself from the sex trade, and, by the healing grace of God, launched her non-profit, Eve’s Angels, which reaches out to girls who want out of the sex trade.
Dancing for the Devil takes an in-depth look at Anny’s struggles and sheds a new insider’s light on the horrible reality of the sex industry from someone who’s seen the worst of it. This captivating memoir shows how women from all walks of life find themselves trapped by the sex trade and, most importantly, explains how they can get out, start over, and find the love of Christ. Courageous and unforgettable, Dancing for the Devil is a heartbreaking story of darkness, grace, and, ultimately, redemption.
What happened to Anny Donewald could happen to anybody. She had a good life until she was sexually abused by a player on a team her father coached. From there is was a terrible descent into the world of strip clubs and the sex industry. How do you get out of this lifestyle when 1) you have to support your daughter and 2) you really do not know anything else? Once Ms. Donewald hit rock bottom she called out to God to rescue her. And He did! Her prayers are answered and she starts on a bumpy road to recovery. She feels that she is directed by God to help those, who like herself, feel trapped in the sex industry. Ms. Donewald has founded a Christian, non-profit, organization called “Eve’s Angels” to minister to not only the women but the men in the industry. This is not a book filled with graphic imagery of sex and violence it is, however, an honest expose of one woman’s nightmare and her eventual release from it. As I said this could happen to anybody we need to know how to help if we ever encounter someone in need. I think this book does exactly that.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Howard Books for this review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
From the back cover: All that glitters is not gold.
An explosive memoir of transformation from a high-end stripper and escort who hit rock-bottom, turned to God, and left the sex trade to found Eve’s Angels, a ministry reaching out to women in the sex industry.
Growing up as the daughter of an NCAA Championship-winning basketball coach and a stay-at-home mom, Anny Donewald had a seemingly blessed childhood. Then, at thirteen, one of her father’s players sexually abused her, and Donewald embarked on a path toward self-destruction.
When Donewald was convinced to compete in an amateur night at a strip club, she found herself drawn into a world of drugs, money, and flesh peddlers in Michigan and Chicago—and eventually Las Vegas’ hottest XXX clubs. But the fantasy of fistfuls of hundred dollar bills quickly turned to the reality of bloodstains on bathroom floors and nights with customers in presidential suites at luxurious hotels. At an emotional breaking point and pondering the termination of her unborn son, Anny reached the gates of her personal hell. There, she found God.
Then, this long-legged, fiery blonde fought to free herself from the sex trade, and, by the healing grace of God, launched her non-profit, Eve’s Angels, which reaches out to girls who want out of the sex trade.
Dancing for the Devil takes an in-depth look at Anny’s struggles and sheds a new insider’s light on the horrible reality of the sex industry from someone who’s seen the worst of it. This captivating memoir shows how women from all walks of life find themselves trapped by the sex trade and, most importantly, explains how they can get out, start over, and find the love of Christ. Courageous and unforgettable, Dancing for the Devil is a heartbreaking story of darkness, grace, and, ultimately, redemption.
What happened to Anny Donewald could happen to anybody. She had a good life until she was sexually abused by a player on a team her father coached. From there is was a terrible descent into the world of strip clubs and the sex industry. How do you get out of this lifestyle when 1) you have to support your daughter and 2) you really do not know anything else? Once Ms. Donewald hit rock bottom she called out to God to rescue her. And He did! Her prayers are answered and she starts on a bumpy road to recovery. She feels that she is directed by God to help those, who like herself, feel trapped in the sex industry. Ms. Donewald has founded a Christian, non-profit, organization called “Eve’s Angels” to minister to not only the women but the men in the industry. This is not a book filled with graphic imagery of sex and violence it is, however, an honest expose of one woman’s nightmare and her eventual release from it. As I said this could happen to anybody we need to know how to help if we ever encounter someone in need. I think this book does exactly that.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Howard Books for this review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
July 7, 2018
I will say first that I like the title of the book. Also, I was very happy that the authors avoided the profanity that they no doubt could have included.
I bought Dancing for the Devil in spite of having stopped following Anny Donewald on Facebook a few years earlier. I found a lot of her theological pronouncements to be just kind of uninformed and tiresome. I recall feeling put off by her tough girl routine and also think that people who put themselves out publicly as evangelists for Christ should hold themselves to higher standards than I felt she did in a few different ways. You can be "real" or whatever and still express yourself like a normal, polite adult. But I am interested enough in the type of ministry she does that when I saw the book on Amazon, I bought it.
Anny's story is a little different than lots of dancers' stories in that she had an involved dad who was married to her mother. What struck me as a little odd about her story though is that (as she tells it) she did not feel that she could tell her parents about some sexual predations she was enduring at the hands of one of her father's players. (Her dad was a college basketball coach.) I found myself wondering if she was telling us the whole story, quite honestly. Particularly, I wondered if she had been abused previous to the incidents with the player. In some ways, it does not make sense that the player would go after the coach's daughter (though I believe Anny that he did) and it also did not entirely make sense to me that the incidents she describes - while certainly traumatizing and humiliating - would have been profound enough to lead her into the sex industry, although she was also raped later at boarding school. I do not fault her if she does not want to disclose everything that happened to her to the public; what she reveals is painful enough, but those are a few questions I had when reading.
The book is interesting and flows well, but there were bits that just strained credulity. After "coming to Christ," or whatever evangelicals call it, she claims that she had a dream in which she was instructed to go to a particular gas station and there would be a man there whose mother was sick. She goes to the gas station and the man is in fact there and the situation unfolds as she had foreseen. That could have happened, I suppose, but I am often doubtful about "signs and wonders" that non-denominational Christians claim to experience. The "exorcism" she finds herself performing was likewise not entirely believable.
The book is good, though I would not say a must-read unless you have a particular interest in the type of outreach that Anny does. "Dancing to Despair" is a good book for anyone who has an interest in former dancers, as is Harmony Dust’s book.
I bought Dancing for the Devil in spite of having stopped following Anny Donewald on Facebook a few years earlier. I found a lot of her theological pronouncements to be just kind of uninformed and tiresome. I recall feeling put off by her tough girl routine and also think that people who put themselves out publicly as evangelists for Christ should hold themselves to higher standards than I felt she did in a few different ways. You can be "real" or whatever and still express yourself like a normal, polite adult. But I am interested enough in the type of ministry she does that when I saw the book on Amazon, I bought it.
Anny's story is a little different than lots of dancers' stories in that she had an involved dad who was married to her mother. What struck me as a little odd about her story though is that (as she tells it) she did not feel that she could tell her parents about some sexual predations she was enduring at the hands of one of her father's players. (Her dad was a college basketball coach.) I found myself wondering if she was telling us the whole story, quite honestly. Particularly, I wondered if she had been abused previous to the incidents with the player. In some ways, it does not make sense that the player would go after the coach's daughter (though I believe Anny that he did) and it also did not entirely make sense to me that the incidents she describes - while certainly traumatizing and humiliating - would have been profound enough to lead her into the sex industry, although she was also raped later at boarding school. I do not fault her if she does not want to disclose everything that happened to her to the public; what she reveals is painful enough, but those are a few questions I had when reading.
The book is interesting and flows well, but there were bits that just strained credulity. After "coming to Christ," or whatever evangelicals call it, she claims that she had a dream in which she was instructed to go to a particular gas station and there would be a man there whose mother was sick. She goes to the gas station and the man is in fact there and the situation unfolds as she had foreseen. That could have happened, I suppose, but I am often doubtful about "signs and wonders" that non-denominational Christians claim to experience. The "exorcism" she finds herself performing was likewise not entirely believable.
The book is good, though I would not say a must-read unless you have a particular interest in the type of outreach that Anny does. "Dancing to Despair" is a good book for anyone who has an interest in former dancers, as is Harmony Dust’s book.
July 12, 2014
Anny Donewald tells her story, sharing from her heart about her past and the great things that God has done and is still doing in her life.
Anny Donewald grew up the daughter of a famous NCAA basketball coach, with the eyes of a small town constantly upon her and family. Anny experienced sexual abuse at a young age, and again in college, and eventually found herself working as a stripper and raising her young daughter on her own.
Anny tells her story honestly and compellingly about the heartache, and struggles she faced, and many of the parts of the books are rather hard to read, my heart went out to her, and I rejoiced as I read about how she came to faith, and her strong desire and drive to follow God and help other women trapped by the sex industry.
I loved how Anny talks about how God used her to reach people, and even though she was doubtful, she followed his beckoning, which eventually led to her starting an organization called Eve's Angels to help women escape the sex industry.
Overall this was a heartfelt, and at times painful memoir. There are of course, adult themes in this book, but I do feel that she did spare many details in the telling of the story, giving the story enough edge to convey the story realistically and call readers to action, yet holding back many of the darker elements of the life that Anny previously experienced, mostly for the sake of the readers. I definitely think that the explicit elements were handled well, and fit very well with the kind of book that it is. Definitely one I would recommend, as a powerful story of redemption.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and testimonials in Advertising."
Anny Donewald grew up the daughter of a famous NCAA basketball coach, with the eyes of a small town constantly upon her and family. Anny experienced sexual abuse at a young age, and again in college, and eventually found herself working as a stripper and raising her young daughter on her own.
Anny tells her story honestly and compellingly about the heartache, and struggles she faced, and many of the parts of the books are rather hard to read, my heart went out to her, and I rejoiced as I read about how she came to faith, and her strong desire and drive to follow God and help other women trapped by the sex industry.
I loved how Anny talks about how God used her to reach people, and even though she was doubtful, she followed his beckoning, which eventually led to her starting an organization called Eve's Angels to help women escape the sex industry.
Overall this was a heartfelt, and at times painful memoir. There are of course, adult themes in this book, but I do feel that she did spare many details in the telling of the story, giving the story enough edge to convey the story realistically and call readers to action, yet holding back many of the darker elements of the life that Anny previously experienced, mostly for the sake of the readers. I definitely think that the explicit elements were handled well, and fit very well with the kind of book that it is. Definitely one I would recommend, as a powerful story of redemption.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and testimonials in Advertising."
November 10, 2014
Anny Donewald’s Dancing for the Devil opens the door to what actually takes place behind all the allure of strip clubs and high-priced prostitution. It would seem that the world of the sex industry, which has sadly become so mainstream in American culture, was all glitz and glam. Yet, in reality there are souls of broken and lost girls that have experienced sexual abuse at an alarming rate that led many of these women down this path. Donewald’s book Dancing with the Devil provides an in-depth look at this world, complete with statistics placed at the beginning of each chapter that will have one gasp in horror of just how prevalent sexual abuse and the sex industry are really connected.
Donewald is brave in her story telling. Her family background is so complete and even inspiring to read that one would never imagine a girl from such a promising, God-fearing family would end up in the arena of a strip club. Yet, this is what makes the story so intriguing that this could happen to anyone who suffers sexual abuse and does not receive help.
Donewald’s parents were both affluent in their community. Her father was a NCAA coach and her mother Kathy were both pillars of faith and ideal parents. They were a loving and nurturing couple that led a solid Christian life. I found the details of how they lived so encouraging. They never wavered; as a family they always trusted in God and stuck together. Yet, as much as they tried to protect their children, a teenage Donewald was sexually abused by one of players on her father’s basketball team. Donewald never told a soul and this abuse and secret would play a huge role in what led her to strip dancing. for more of this book review go to www.anthembookreview.blogspot.com
November 25, 2016
It's amazing how 1 or 2 things in an almost perfect childhood can change a person so severely and make them make such bad choices, one after the other until they are so deep in their hole that they can't see a way out, then turn to drugs as an escape and make things even worse. Anny's story went on through years of strip clubs and drug abuse and it was hard to read at times, but it was interesting to see what goes on in that world and how things are done, how sex workers are groomed by other sex workers, how everyone is so hard and selfish to the point of not caring about anyone but themselves and how much they can get from any situation. It's a sad world but it's explained so well. Anny eventually come out on top and becomes a Blessing to many others and we have a happy ending. I just LOVE a happy ending!
January 7, 2016
I had the pleasure of meeting Anny at my church a couple of years ago, as she is involved in outreach ministry there. Most stories about girls who end up in the sex trade feature girls from broken homes and poverty situations, which was not Anny's case at all. She grew up with loving parents; her father was a well-known basketball coach and they were able to send her to one of the best creative arts schools in the Midwest. Her story of how she ended up in the sex trade, how her faith got her out, and her relentless devotion to helping other women is definitely worth reading.
June 9, 2016
Beautiful Story of Redemption!
This autobiography tells of a woman's transformation from a young innocent girl to a stripper/prostitute and how she was redeemed by turning to Jesus as her Lord and Savior. She now has a full time ministry witnessing to and pouring out love to other women in the sex industry. She writes beautifully that it is love and grace that will win these women to the Lord, not condemnation and scorn. A great read for anyone who loves tales of beauty from ashes!
This autobiography tells of a woman's transformation from a young innocent girl to a stripper/prostitute and how she was redeemed by turning to Jesus as her Lord and Savior. She now has a full time ministry witnessing to and pouring out love to other women in the sex industry. She writes beautifully that it is love and grace that will win these women to the Lord, not condemnation and scorn. A great read for anyone who loves tales of beauty from ashes!
June 29, 2014
What a fascinating story and a brilliant read. this is a story of sex for sale, drugs and debauchery at hits damndest, Following abuse at 13 years of age she embarked down the road of personal hell where women are both trapped and trafficked, where sexi is sold, itsd an insiders view to the seedy side of the sex industry, from both stripper to pole dancer where nothing comes easy, a place of secrets never to be told together with an eventual journey of healing.
January 2, 2015
This story is riveting. Any really went down the wrong path repeatedly and through the grace of God and her dedicated, patient and outstanding parents, she was able to find her way back home. It's inspiring and teaches you to never give up on someone you love.
May 3, 2015
I learned a lot very moving
June 14, 2015
Hard to read at times, but an amazing story!
January 5, 2017
Raw, real and challenging.
Amazing how God never quits on us.
This young lady had riches in the 'world' but poverty stricken spiritually.
Love wins...!
Amazing how God never quits on us.
This young lady had riches in the 'world' but poverty stricken spiritually.
Love wins...!
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