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90-Day Geisha
The hard-drinking, drug-taking, all-night culture that dominates Tokyo’s Roppongi district can be a surreal place. Overworked Japanese business men will pay handsomely for the services of a hostess—someone to talk to, someone to provide hot towels and drinks, and sometimes just a companion with whom to sing karaoke with all night. Intrigued by rumors of this strange subculture and armed with her 90-day work visa and new husband, Matt, Chelsea throws herself into the lion’s den. Yet what she discovers about herself and about the inhabitants of this nocturnal life far exceeds her expectations.
Hostessing, she comes to find, has “very little to do with sex, quite a lot to do with psychology, and nothing to do with prostitution.” Her personality and conversation skills are her top commodity, and Chelsea quickly finds herself charmed by these billionaire men, many of whom are funny, intelligent, even kind, and often, very lonely. But as she becomes more and more attached to her clients, Chelsea soon finds herself getting burned at her own game, as the endless presents, compliments, and destructive atmosphere of alcohol and drugs threaten to take both her marriage, and her sanity, to the edge.
Hostessing, she comes to find, has “very little to do with sex, quite a lot to do with psychology, and nothing to do with prostitution.” Her personality and conversation skills are her top commodity, and Chelsea quickly finds herself charmed by these billionaire men, many of whom are funny, intelligent, even kind, and often, very lonely. But as she becomes more and more attached to her clients, Chelsea soon finds herself getting burned at her own game, as the endless presents, compliments, and destructive atmosphere of alcohol and drugs threaten to take both her marriage, and her sanity, to the edge.
320 pages, Hardcover
First published December 31, 2007
36 people are currently reading
398 people want to read
About the author
Chelsea Haywood
3 books4 followersChelsea Haywood was born in British Columbia and has traveled independently and as a fashion model since she was 16 years old, and has been featured in magazines, on catwalks, and television throughout Asia. She splits her time between London and Vancouver.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 136 reviews
March 2, 2010
Haywood travels to Tokyo with her husband on a 90-day tourist visa and gets a job in a Roppongi hostess bar with the direct intention of writing a book about it. I’m usually tolerant of, and often enjoy, stunt books, but this one reads like a badly written teenager’s diary entries. There’s no story arc. Judging by the quality of the writing, I’m guessing that the scattered snippets on Japanese culture and history were researched via Wikipedia and/or a travel guide with words rearranged to avoid being accused of plagiarism.
I have a huge problem with the use of “Geisha” included in the title. A geisha is a highly skilled artist who trains for many years at her craft. How insulting and culturally insensitive.
For a much better narrative on the experience of working in a Japanese hostess bar I would recommend Bar Flower by Lea Jacobson.
I have a huge problem with the use of “Geisha” included in the title. A geisha is a highly skilled artist who trains for many years at her craft. How insulting and culturally insensitive.
For a much better narrative on the experience of working in a Japanese hostess bar I would recommend Bar Flower by Lea Jacobson.
August 25, 2009
What a shame Haywood can't write! Her experience working as a hostess in Tokyo must have been fascinating, but she has a pretentious 13-year-old's idea of what constitutes good prose, which results in more squinting modifiers and misused polysyllabic words than you can shake a stiletto heel at. If you can get through a whole book's worth of sentences like "Half-detonated popcorn kernels lay saturated in grease, and plumes of cigarette smoke hung stagnant while the ink of prestigious vineyard names bled minutely under the sweat of liquids equalising temperatures via a hundred cubes of ice," you are a more patient woman than I.
June 10, 2013
A local library book sale brought this novel to my attention. I now wish I had picked up that copy "101 Super Uses for a Tampon Applicator" instead. Luckily, I only spent $2 on this waste of paper but it was still $2 too much.
Not only is this "story" (yes, it's in quotes because there really isn't one) contrived and overly written but it's an insult to the readers sensibilities.
The entire time it played out Ms. Haywood's need to brag about how horrible it all was and how smart she was compared to the other hostesses, clients and Japanese in general.
Japan's unique take on the bar scene can be found in places like Ginza in Tokyo, where pretty young ladies, pour your drinks, light your cigarettes and engage you in captivating conversations. To put it simply.
Apparently, it only took Ms. Haywood 90 days to sum up the entire experience. It also only took 90 days to ruin her marriage, that was sticking together with flimsy reasoning, at best.
If you can make it past the overly trite writing, then you will find some tiny pearls of information about the hostess bar scene in Tokyo, Japan that will grab your interest.
If you really want to know more, I recommend you burn that book and read "Bar Flower: My Decadently Destructive Days and Nights as a Tokyo Nightclub Hostess" by Lea Jacobson. Ms. Jaconbson's story is head and shoulders above anything Ms. Haywood attempted to convey.
Not only is this "story" (yes, it's in quotes because there really isn't one) contrived and overly written but it's an insult to the readers sensibilities.
The entire time it played out Ms. Haywood's need to brag about how horrible it all was and how smart she was compared to the other hostesses, clients and Japanese in general.
Japan's unique take on the bar scene can be found in places like Ginza in Tokyo, where pretty young ladies, pour your drinks, light your cigarettes and engage you in captivating conversations. To put it simply.
Apparently, it only took Ms. Haywood 90 days to sum up the entire experience. It also only took 90 days to ruin her marriage, that was sticking together with flimsy reasoning, at best.
If you can make it past the overly trite writing, then you will find some tiny pearls of information about the hostess bar scene in Tokyo, Japan that will grab your interest.
If you really want to know more, I recommend you burn that book and read "Bar Flower: My Decadently Destructive Days and Nights as a Tokyo Nightclub Hostess" by Lea Jacobson. Ms. Jaconbson's story is head and shoulders above anything Ms. Haywood attempted to convey.
March 22, 2010
The first half of this book was very intriguing and quickly sucked me in. Although I'm not specifically interested in Japanese culture, the concept of hostess bars and Tokyo nightlife in general is curious and I was really interested to see what a young Western woman (like myself) would make of it. At first, I enjoyed seeing that unfamiliar world through Chelsea's eyes and marveling at the strange (to me) aspects of Japanese culture.
About halfway through the book, though, it began to get unbearable. Chelsea starts feelingthe weight of the project she'd taken on, and instead of dissecting it rationally, as a rational human being, she resorts to whining about how tired she constantly is and how much she hates her customers. She begins to call some of the men psychos - although it's kind of hard to tell what makes these men so psychotic, as she isn't an accomplished enough writer to truly distinguish the men she writes about from one another, and I was left wondering what, exactly, was so terrible about one man and so amazing about another.
She begins to whine about everything, from her fellow hostesses to her customers, and instead of thoughtfully musing on how the lifestyle changed her, she started bitching. Her poor husband. And the book ended without any real conclusion whatsoever, other than the fact that she managed to avoid cheating on her husband. And got a book deal out of it. Maybe if the book was a little more introspective and gave a little more thought to the actual culture of the hostess bars, the girls who work there and the men who patronize them, I would have gotten a little more out of it. But all there seemed to be is surface observation and the eventual descent into complaints and self-centered rage, and that wasn't enough to make me sympathize with the author. If you didn't like it, Chelsea, you should have left. It's that simple.
About halfway through the book, though, it began to get unbearable. Chelsea starts feelingthe weight of the project she'd taken on, and instead of dissecting it rationally, as a rational human being, she resorts to whining about how tired she constantly is and how much she hates her customers. She begins to call some of the men psychos - although it's kind of hard to tell what makes these men so psychotic, as she isn't an accomplished enough writer to truly distinguish the men she writes about from one another, and I was left wondering what, exactly, was so terrible about one man and so amazing about another.
She begins to whine about everything, from her fellow hostesses to her customers, and instead of thoughtfully musing on how the lifestyle changed her, she started bitching. Her poor husband. And the book ended without any real conclusion whatsoever, other than the fact that she managed to avoid cheating on her husband. And got a book deal out of it. Maybe if the book was a little more introspective and gave a little more thought to the actual culture of the hostess bars, the girls who work there and the men who patronize them, I would have gotten a little more out of it. But all there seemed to be is surface observation and the eventual descent into complaints and self-centered rage, and that wasn't enough to make me sympathize with the author. If you didn't like it, Chelsea, you should have left. It's that simple.
March 9, 2009
there is no summary of this book so here is one until a librarian updates the listing:
"Millionaires, surgeons, serial killers, CEOs: 'What are your hobbies?' Step into the surreal world of a Tokyo hostess club and gain an exclusive, underground pass through the eyes of author Chelsea Brennan as she attempts to understand a way of life unique to the Japanese, all the while experiencing six-hundred dollar dinners, kabuki theatre, Harajuku shopping sprees, and first-class trips to 'Anywhere you want to go...' Set against the structured insanity of a paradoxical city, 90 Day Geisha is a groundbreaking insight into a subculture spawned from the traditional institution of the geisha that is at once comically hilarious and seriously compelling. While vividly revealing the precarious line between fantasy and reality, this is a fascinating true story propelled by a young woman's unexpected struggle to maintain both sanity and her marital sanctity in the face of material excess and universal temptation."--Provided by publisher
My thoughts: overall I enjoyed this, it was more than just a light read providing some real insights into Japanese culture however I'm just not sure I really liked the main character...
"Millionaires, surgeons, serial killers, CEOs: 'What are your hobbies?' Step into the surreal world of a Tokyo hostess club and gain an exclusive, underground pass through the eyes of author Chelsea Brennan as she attempts to understand a way of life unique to the Japanese, all the while experiencing six-hundred dollar dinners, kabuki theatre, Harajuku shopping sprees, and first-class trips to 'Anywhere you want to go...' Set against the structured insanity of a paradoxical city, 90 Day Geisha is a groundbreaking insight into a subculture spawned from the traditional institution of the geisha that is at once comically hilarious and seriously compelling. While vividly revealing the precarious line between fantasy and reality, this is a fascinating true story propelled by a young woman's unexpected struggle to maintain both sanity and her marital sanctity in the face of material excess and universal temptation."--Provided by publisher
My thoughts: overall I enjoyed this, it was more than just a light read providing some real insights into Japanese culture however I'm just not sure I really liked the main character...
May 23, 2010
I first encountered the Japanese hostess bar on a visit to Hawaii decades ago. These are bars or clubs where men pay lots of money to have women sit and talk to them while they drink real drinks and the women sip drinks with little or no alcohol. The ones I visited were in working class neighborhoods, and they struck me as odd and somewhat sad. Odd because they were foreign to Western culture. And sad because most of the men seemed socially awkward and lonely.
Chelsea Haywood's book 90-day Geisha recounts her recent brief stint as a hostess in one of Tokyo's high end hostess bars. Her customers were not sad-sack bakers and auto mechanics, but high powered and wealthy professionals. Still, she was basically selling the same thing as the hostesses I saw in Hawaii -- conversation, companionship, ego-stroking and over-priced, watered-down drinks.
90-day Geisha is entertaining at times, a bit slow at others. It's a bit of a one-note book, but that's really not surprising given its subtitle. Still, Haywood's book is an interesting look at some aspects of Japanese culture that will surely strike most Westerners as odd. How could people enjoy eating live octopus, especially when its suction cups attach to the inside of your mouth? Why would wealthy, handsome, accomplished, well educated and charismatic men with high-powered jobs and wives and families spend thousands of dollars to take good looking women who aren't going to have sex with them, out to dinner?
Perhaps the answer can only really be understood by someone who grew up in that culture, but what seems certain is that the Japanese hostess bar is just another example of male perogative, a seemingly universal phenomenon. The wrinkle may be different, but the fabric is familiar.
Chelsea Haywood's book 90-day Geisha recounts her recent brief stint as a hostess in one of Tokyo's high end hostess bars. Her customers were not sad-sack bakers and auto mechanics, but high powered and wealthy professionals. Still, she was basically selling the same thing as the hostesses I saw in Hawaii -- conversation, companionship, ego-stroking and over-priced, watered-down drinks.
90-day Geisha is entertaining at times, a bit slow at others. It's a bit of a one-note book, but that's really not surprising given its subtitle. Still, Haywood's book is an interesting look at some aspects of Japanese culture that will surely strike most Westerners as odd. How could people enjoy eating live octopus, especially when its suction cups attach to the inside of your mouth? Why would wealthy, handsome, accomplished, well educated and charismatic men with high-powered jobs and wives and families spend thousands of dollars to take good looking women who aren't going to have sex with them, out to dinner?
Perhaps the answer can only really be understood by someone who grew up in that culture, but what seems certain is that the Japanese hostess bar is just another example of male perogative, a seemingly universal phenomenon. The wrinkle may be different, but the fabric is familiar.
July 12, 2019
Ok, I knew I would enjoy this book because I am slightly obsessed with Japanese culture and my vacation to Tokyo a few years back was unforgettable. Yet, I did not expect to be blown away by this story like I did. I listened to it on audible and the narrator did an excellent job of bringing the memoir to life. If you have read the true crime novel, The People Who Eat Darkness, you will be shocked by the correlation here. I enjoyed every second of Chelsea Haywood's eye-opening and honest account of her experiences in Tokyo.
June 27, 2012
I read this book about 2 years ago, so I don't remember all the details associated with it. What I do remember is that it provided some insightful answers to questions that I have been wondering about the hostess situation in Japan. I immediately identified with Chelsea's story as she was in Japan around the same time that I lived there. Although I've never had any association with the hostess bars, I was always curious about the lives of foreign women who worked in them. Unlike some of the women (notably from Eastern Europe and SE Asia), Chelsea had the privilege to weave in and out of the system relatively easily. I really enjoyed her book as it provided insight into an area of Japan that I wasn't brave enough to explore. In saying this, I give her extra credit for attempting something that is so dangerous while also being able to depict the experiences many women experience in this seedy underworld of Japan's entertainment industry.
May 26, 2010
*sigh* I picked this book up against my better judgment. Just reading the title pissed me off since a bar hostess is to a geisha what a college dance production is to a performance of the national ballet. However, I pressed on as I know almost nothing of Hostess culture.
The book starts quite well, introducing the bewildering combination of neon lights and dark corners and a certain seediness cloaked in a thin veneer of respectability that is Tokyo nightlife. It starts going downhill when it becomes less about the culture and experience and more about about Haywood's utter self-absorption and constant whining.
The schedule of working at a bar has her maintaining a grueling switch of night for day that leaves her little time or energy for any meaningful interaction with her husband. He takes a night job as well, putting them on the same schedule, but as she becomes more jaded and over her work, she seems to pull further and further from him until by the time she finds herself on a weekend trip with a client, snorting coke while hoping against hope she isn't going to cheat on her husband, the reader doesn't care. I was almost hoping she would and that he'd find someone more suitable.
I left this book with more knowledge about hostess culture and Tokyo, but mostly my takeaway was a profound dislike for Haywood and deepest sympathy for the saint of a man that put up with her lies, drama, and utter inability to care about anything other than her own current happiness.
The book starts quite well, introducing the bewildering combination of neon lights and dark corners and a certain seediness cloaked in a thin veneer of respectability that is Tokyo nightlife. It starts going downhill when it becomes less about the culture and experience and more about about Haywood's utter self-absorption and constant whining.
The schedule of working at a bar has her maintaining a grueling switch of night for day that leaves her little time or energy for any meaningful interaction with her husband. He takes a night job as well, putting them on the same schedule, but as she becomes more jaded and over her work, she seems to pull further and further from him until by the time she finds herself on a weekend trip with a client, snorting coke while hoping against hope she isn't going to cheat on her husband, the reader doesn't care. I was almost hoping she would and that he'd find someone more suitable.
I left this book with more knowledge about hostess culture and Tokyo, but mostly my takeaway was a profound dislike for Haywood and deepest sympathy for the saint of a man that put up with her lies, drama, and utter inability to care about anything other than her own current happiness.
May 26, 2012
I am probably being generous with 3 stars because I read this while I was in Japan and I enjoyed recognizing all of the new places and aspects of Japanese culture that I was experiencing. This book reads like the blog of a 20 something year old, which is essentially what it is. The title is absolutely ridiculous, comparing a hostess with a Geisha is like comparing an underwear clad college student promoting Prana in Ybor with a Julliard trained ballet dancer.
But the whole environment is interesting and the writing is not as poor as I expected it to be. Mainly I felt distracted by a maternal sense of concern for the author. The poor girl has this fantasy that she is doing everything for her art! (this book) and so it's worth sacrificing her dignity and self respect. She is so so young and she's so very early in her marriage. I thought over and over that her marriage wouldn't survive this, and it turns out I was right. They divorced shortly after this book, admittedly in part because of this lifestyle. Was it worth it? Haywood would probably say yes, but I couldn't help feeling like she sold her soul to write a pretty weak autobiography.
But the whole environment is interesting and the writing is not as poor as I expected it to be. Mainly I felt distracted by a maternal sense of concern for the author. The poor girl has this fantasy that she is doing everything for her art! (this book) and so it's worth sacrificing her dignity and self respect. She is so so young and she's so very early in her marriage. I thought over and over that her marriage wouldn't survive this, and it turns out I was right. They divorced shortly after this book, admittedly in part because of this lifestyle. Was it worth it? Haywood would probably say yes, but I couldn't help feeling like she sold her soul to write a pretty weak autobiography.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 29, 2012
I'm not sure what to say about this book. It was definitely a fast read and entertaining and a bit titillating. That said the author could have benefited from a bit more self reflection (any 20 year old who says "I never thought I would get married, but then I did" could probably benefit from a bit more self reflection and that was in the first few chapters of the book). Also some bombs were dropped (maybe I was a hostess to a serial rapist and murderer!) that seemed ill researched when they could have been well researched - Joji Obara's picture is all over google, for example, and I'm sure it was in 2009 when the book was published, too. Also the dialogue seemed jumpy and didn't always make sense. Basically, a intense story written in a chick lit style - which can be done (see: The Nanny Diaries) but probably takes a bit more technique to be done well.
February 2, 2010
I read this because I thought it would be sort of useful in gleaning tidbits about day-to-day life in Japan, and it was, if to a lesser extent than I'd hoped. I think Haywood had a good idea that was rather poorly executed. The book didn't have a lot of continuity; there wasn't much attempt at theme or drawing conclusions about the culture of Hostessing in Japan. Mostly it read like a series of blog entries... a few paragraphs on this dinner, a page or two on a weekend trip, etc. She gives us snapshots of her life as a hostess without attempting to string them together into much of a narrative. I felt like I was flipping through a series of garish photographs; I got a bit of exposition, but not as much as I would have liked, and very little explanation.
October 20, 2024
The true story of when Chelsea was a Tokyo hostess for 3 months. She joins with the intention of research for this book, but soon gets caught up in the somewhat bizarre world of hosting.
It seems like such a strange concept for a man to pay to basically have drinks and chat to a girl. To take her to expensive places and have nothing sexual in return. Some of these men are someone's husband. But this seems to be very popular to rich men in Japan. There are some very strange men in this book!
Chelsea moves to Tokyo with her husband Matt (although to all her customers, she is single), and she ends up questioning her relationship with him, when she starts to get feelings for Yoshi. While he does seem like an interesting and charismatic character, I couldn't help but think it was his wallet that was the most alluring thing about him. I was disappointed she got distracted by him and put her own relationship in jeopardy.
She also explores the Japanese obsession with schoolgirls, which is pretty creepy.
I took this book with me on holiday to Ras Al-Khaimah, but this would be best enjoyed on a trip to Japan, to really get into it.
It seems like such a strange concept for a man to pay to basically have drinks and chat to a girl. To take her to expensive places and have nothing sexual in return. Some of these men are someone's husband. But this seems to be very popular to rich men in Japan. There are some very strange men in this book!
Chelsea moves to Tokyo with her husband Matt (although to all her customers, she is single), and she ends up questioning her relationship with him, when she starts to get feelings for Yoshi. While he does seem like an interesting and charismatic character, I couldn't help but think it was his wallet that was the most alluring thing about him. I was disappointed she got distracted by him and put her own relationship in jeopardy.
She also explores the Japanese obsession with schoolgirls, which is pretty creepy.
I took this book with me on holiday to Ras Al-Khaimah, but this would be best enjoyed on a trip to Japan, to really get into it.
September 25, 2017
I knew I was going to have a problem with this book early on, when the author, with no apologies whatsoever, rendered the imperfect English of the Japanese people she spoke to "phonetically" - while of course including all the commentary people gave on how well she spoke Japanese. Haywood was in Japan for all of ninety days, and she was, she insists, doing it as "research." She wants the reader to know how removed she was from the whole situation - not a sex worker, not comfortable exploiting the customers the way the other women were, etc., and yet her contempt for her clients is near-constant, and she seems pretty exploitative to me (although so are they, in fairness). Did the transactional nature of what she was doing really come as a surprise? And even if it did - she chose to continue. The writing isn't strong and the chapters are disjointed; Haywood clearly doesn't have any real insights to offer, nor is she particularly self-reflective (at least not in this book). Not worth finishing.
February 3, 2011
I usually don't read biographies or memoirs but the title caught my eye. Needless to say I wasn't disappointed. I was curious to learn more about the Japanese hostess culture, especially from the point of view of a westerner. From the very first chapter I was immediately drawn into her story. The way in which she paints Japanese culture invokes a world of entitlement and materialism. Yet it is apparent that the world in which many of her clients live is empty and lonely, punctuated only by brief moments of 'living' surrounded by endless hours of work and duty. When reading this book I found myself becoming attached to some of her clients, and creeped out by others. I wanted her relationships with them to be more real, because to me they seemed to need her more than anything.
April 18, 2010
I'm utterly fascinated by geisha, courtesans, saloon girls/soiled doves and the entire "women using their bodies, wits and guile for their own purposes" thing.
However, sadly, I found Haywood's personality (as expressed through her writing) to be difficult to empathize with. Her duplicity towards her husband was as great as that she apparently had difficulty coping with offering towards some of her customers, which made for an uncomfortable read.
If this was a work of fiction, rather than a memoir, I'd say that she'd failed in creating a protagonist that the reader could connect with. That's an even sadder issue with a true-life piece where the main character is the author.
However, sadly, I found Haywood's personality (as expressed through her writing) to be difficult to empathize with. Her duplicity towards her husband was as great as that she apparently had difficulty coping with offering towards some of her customers, which made for an uncomfortable read.
If this was a work of fiction, rather than a memoir, I'd say that she'd failed in creating a protagonist that the reader could connect with. That's an even sadder issue with a true-life piece where the main character is the author.
April 23, 2013
Simplistic writing. Hard to sympathize with the author. But some interesting stories.
August 29, 2013
Somewhat interesting if you can get over the amateur writing and the constant passive "bragging" and self promotion.
October 27, 2022
Book gets too much hate for the flashy title. It’s just marketing like any headline w/ a clear byline: hostess. W/o such, I’d probably never hear of let alone grab this book. The model’s a club hostess following in the footsteps of her 16y/o role model whose international travels are funded by jap biz men she served sake. Girl can write more vividly than 60% of authors and that’s clear by paragraph one. Interestingly, the Jap-Italian hirer suggests she peruse the other clubs in case they’re a better fit since he must have so much turnover despite the amazing pay. I guess there are too many travelers with vices including indecision. The first question the author wants to unravel is this very thing: Why do so few immigrants write of their Tokyo travels and why do the bar girls wind up so seemingly screwed up?
I can see people not liking the phonetic writing of English (berry vs very) but if that’s how it sounds, that’s how it sounds and this book is 20y/o. there’s a surprising amount of diversity (Nigerian, Italian, Israeli, Canadian) but I guess that’s because it’s Tokyo rather than even Kyoto, which is more homogenous. She gets propositioned to work at a strip club and then a vaudeville-esque bar w/ trans art. The latter she’s more interested in even though if you call out sick, you have to pay them. I’m not exactly sure why she wants to hostess because she doesn’t seem promiscuous or into imbibing. I get the money and adventure but the more I think about the club name One Eyed Jack, it sounds phallic enough to where stripping isn’t a gargantuan leap so I worry she may be veering into oppai pub territory when she wants something more innocent. Allegedly.
The emotions are quite bipolar. We either get no reaction as men get drunk and flirt in front of her, or we get sudden loathing for that type of scene later—yet slight affection for worse offenders. Also, she has a husband with her she married at 18 on a whim who she claims to madly adore. The sickly sweet prose on his despite little of his actual appearance makes me assume they are divorced shortly after this publication. Also odd, she seemed a teetotaler then suddenly goes to bars with uber-rich men and gets wasted and let’s them cheek-kiss her (again, no emotionally reaction when she’s usually full of snide jokes and girly voice). Her motives always seem tricky to pin, even when stated plainly: to be a foreign observer for a book idea.
The Korean men are viewed as most Western and fratty by locals and gaijin, one headlocking her at the bar, asking her whore rates. Her coworkers at the bar shrug and the light molestation off. Many strangers of all sorts cat-call, pinch, spank and kiss her. She does mostly fend them off but still gives out her number and claims she’s single. Though this must be to earn more money or make things end quickly, it’s dangerous and doesn’t explain how much she continues to compliment their appearance. Even the girls all tell her she should be a stripper but be mindful of the Yakuza and gov’s cut. I am also surprised about all the mention of cocaine when I thought the culture, not just the laws, were way more severe on that stuff. Even the club rules she has a weird relationship with. She’s told not to bottle men (get kickbacks from bars for having drink dates) at the American Club or she’ll be fired so she straightaway does it yet won’t have paid dinner with a group of clients and coworkers even though that’s encouraged for bonuses.
I like the bean businessman, friendly and non-sexual, but she only seems to seethe around men like him or ones with no context instead of the predatory ones like obnoxious Yoshi. There are many references to Japanese serial killers yet the girls still go with strangers on car tours with touchy-feely lonely men—with the encouragement of their broke and likely gay/cheating boyfriends, no less. It’s also interesting this model who speaks little of her job only seems to eat ice cream and sugary juice and wine. I like hearing the candid racial and political talk from every group and descriptions of typhoons and earthquakes.
Dialogue can be confusing in that people sound too similar or with weird reactions and multiple peoples’ actions will be within one paragraph. It’s astounding though reality-show-fun to hear her backwards attractions: going for the ostentatious, karaoke-cringey billionaire instead of the soft-talking, successful dr who buys her a Mac laptop and cares deeply for his dying patients, his worst crime touching her shoulders and phoning infrequently vs Mr. Moneybag’s public humiliation of fake arguing and hard spanking. It’s like an incel meme. I like the bits about coke addiction and history of teen pantie-selling but the girl comes off too hypocritical to be taken as anything but judgmental. Halfway through the book, she becomes more tolerable, her facade cracking and depression/poor choices better explained by lack of sleep/sunlight/over-intoxication. Decent end though not sure I believe all of the most important event.
I can see people not liking the phonetic writing of English (berry vs very) but if that’s how it sounds, that’s how it sounds and this book is 20y/o. there’s a surprising amount of diversity (Nigerian, Italian, Israeli, Canadian) but I guess that’s because it’s Tokyo rather than even Kyoto, which is more homogenous. She gets propositioned to work at a strip club and then a vaudeville-esque bar w/ trans art. The latter she’s more interested in even though if you call out sick, you have to pay them. I’m not exactly sure why she wants to hostess because she doesn’t seem promiscuous or into imbibing. I get the money and adventure but the more I think about the club name One Eyed Jack, it sounds phallic enough to where stripping isn’t a gargantuan leap so I worry she may be veering into oppai pub territory when she wants something more innocent. Allegedly.
The emotions are quite bipolar. We either get no reaction as men get drunk and flirt in front of her, or we get sudden loathing for that type of scene later—yet slight affection for worse offenders. Also, she has a husband with her she married at 18 on a whim who she claims to madly adore. The sickly sweet prose on his despite little of his actual appearance makes me assume they are divorced shortly after this publication. Also odd, she seemed a teetotaler then suddenly goes to bars with uber-rich men and gets wasted and let’s them cheek-kiss her (again, no emotionally reaction when she’s usually full of snide jokes and girly voice). Her motives always seem tricky to pin, even when stated plainly: to be a foreign observer for a book idea.
The Korean men are viewed as most Western and fratty by locals and gaijin, one headlocking her at the bar, asking her whore rates. Her coworkers at the bar shrug and the light molestation off. Many strangers of all sorts cat-call, pinch, spank and kiss her. She does mostly fend them off but still gives out her number and claims she’s single. Though this must be to earn more money or make things end quickly, it’s dangerous and doesn’t explain how much she continues to compliment their appearance. Even the girls all tell her she should be a stripper but be mindful of the Yakuza and gov’s cut. I am also surprised about all the mention of cocaine when I thought the culture, not just the laws, were way more severe on that stuff. Even the club rules she has a weird relationship with. She’s told not to bottle men (get kickbacks from bars for having drink dates) at the American Club or she’ll be fired so she straightaway does it yet won’t have paid dinner with a group of clients and coworkers even though that’s encouraged for bonuses.
I like the bean businessman, friendly and non-sexual, but she only seems to seethe around men like him or ones with no context instead of the predatory ones like obnoxious Yoshi. There are many references to Japanese serial killers yet the girls still go with strangers on car tours with touchy-feely lonely men—with the encouragement of their broke and likely gay/cheating boyfriends, no less. It’s also interesting this model who speaks little of her job only seems to eat ice cream and sugary juice and wine. I like hearing the candid racial and political talk from every group and descriptions of typhoons and earthquakes.
Dialogue can be confusing in that people sound too similar or with weird reactions and multiple peoples’ actions will be within one paragraph. It’s astounding though reality-show-fun to hear her backwards attractions: going for the ostentatious, karaoke-cringey billionaire instead of the soft-talking, successful dr who buys her a Mac laptop and cares deeply for his dying patients, his worst crime touching her shoulders and phoning infrequently vs Mr. Moneybag’s public humiliation of fake arguing and hard spanking. It’s like an incel meme. I like the bits about coke addiction and history of teen pantie-selling but the girl comes off too hypocritical to be taken as anything but judgmental. Halfway through the book, she becomes more tolerable, her facade cracking and depression/poor choices better explained by lack of sleep/sunlight/over-intoxication. Decent end though not sure I believe all of the most important event.
March 24, 2020
As strange as it may sound, I think this memoir might have been better as a novel. What I mean is that while the bare bones idea is there, it lacked a compelling narrative, underlying theme, or meaningful revelations mined from the depths of thought which is what I expect from great memoirs. This felt more like a jumble of experiences without any reflection or more abstract thought—and if you’re going to do just straight experiences, you gotta be funny. Additionally the writing was only mediocre at best and atrociously overwrought at worst. For example: “Half detonated popcorn kernels lay saturated in grease, and plumes of cigarette smoke hung stagnant while the ink of prestigious vineyard names bled minutely under the sweat of liquids equalizing temperatures via a hundred cubes of ice.” Yikes!
Now if Chelsea had taken her experiences, percolated on it, then written a mystery about a young woman who thinks she’s solved the murder of a hostess (perhaps her school friend), or if it was a tightly packed romantic drama where the young woman was bored in her marriage and suddenly wrestled with bad boy millionaire Yoshi, then it would’ve been much more satisfying. Heck even if she had focused exclusively on thinking deeply about the Japanese psyche and what hostesses and geisha have in common (a la Nicholas Bornoff’s Pink Samurai) that would’ve been more interesting than the pile of words slapped on pages that was deemed somehow worthy of publication outside a blog.
Now if Chelsea had taken her experiences, percolated on it, then written a mystery about a young woman who thinks she’s solved the murder of a hostess (perhaps her school friend), or if it was a tightly packed romantic drama where the young woman was bored in her marriage and suddenly wrestled with bad boy millionaire Yoshi, then it would’ve been much more satisfying. Heck even if she had focused exclusively on thinking deeply about the Japanese psyche and what hostesses and geisha have in common (a la Nicholas Bornoff’s Pink Samurai) that would’ve been more interesting than the pile of words slapped on pages that was deemed somehow worthy of publication outside a blog.
June 21, 2017
I enjoyed this memoir in terms of hearing about what it's like to work in the hostess industry in Tokyo. I did not, however, enjoy Chelsea's attempted analysis of Japanese culture or the male psyche. To me, she comes off as very judgmental, tries too hard to "sound smart" in her deductions though they are not based on anything but her singular point of view, and sounds immature. In other words, if it had tried to be less intellectual, the memoir would have been more enjoyable, because that's where it failed. I also thought that, at the end, Chelsea's attitude toward new hostesses (thinking of them as annoying and not worth her time) was horrible. She acted as though they had to learn everything for themselves. As my sister put it after I explained the book to her, she wrote a book to tell people what it's like to be a Western hostess in Japan, but refused to actually help new hostesses adjust to the lifestyle while she was there doing it. Shitty.
On top of all that (though it's not mentioned in the book), hostessing lead to her eventual divorce in 2009. (Not surprising, seeing as she does admit to basically falling in some form of love with one of the men she sees frequently and eventually letting him grope/kiss her.)
On top of all that (though it's not mentioned in the book), hostessing lead to her eventual divorce in 2009. (Not surprising, seeing as she does admit to basically falling in some form of love with one of the men she sees frequently and eventually letting him grope/kiss her.)
June 20, 2020
A fun beach read with a bit of conversational japanese language thrown in. The story is a bit crazy, her tale exhausting to think about. Constant hostess dates sometimes juggling a few men at a time, fancy dinners out, late late nights, lots of booze sometimes drugs, expensive gifts, the inevitable weight gain, and no sleep. To be young . . .
April 15, 2016
I have given this a decent rating as I did enjoy reading it, as I enjoy anything about Tokyo, but I definitely had my struggles with it.
I have visited Japan 3 times personally and i am learning the language and about the culture. It seems Chelsea had no real interest in Japan apart from as a money making opportunity to write a tell all book.
Honestly I found her quite full of herself and patronizing. The "Berry, berry smarto" comment was especially cringeable. Honestly I would like to hear Chelsea's Japanese to see if her Japanese pronunciation is perfect. I somehow doubt it.
There was nothing especially shocking here. Though Chelsea tries to imply one of her customers is the killer of another foreign hostess to give this book some drama.
I found most of the men she writes about reasonably sympathetic. Yeah, some are married and she likes to make out she had a hard time, and take the moral high ground. But she's quick enough to consider going there herself when she meets a charming, wealthy customer she's attracted to. Oh yeah, did I mention she's married herself?
Chelsea comes across like a hypocrite and totally in love with herself through most of this.
I borrowed this from the library and honestly I am glad I didn't add to Chelsea's earnings on this. However, for someone who has an interest in Japan or hostessing (Not Geisha's. Chelsea is really flattering herself with that one), it's probably worth the read still if you can borrow it. It's not especially well written, but it is a light read if you can get past some of the childish attitude and cultural insensitivity.
I have visited Japan 3 times personally and i am learning the language and about the culture. It seems Chelsea had no real interest in Japan apart from as a money making opportunity to write a tell all book.
Honestly I found her quite full of herself and patronizing. The "Berry, berry smarto" comment was especially cringeable. Honestly I would like to hear Chelsea's Japanese to see if her Japanese pronunciation is perfect. I somehow doubt it.
There was nothing especially shocking here. Though Chelsea tries to imply one of her customers is the killer of another foreign hostess to give this book some drama.
I found most of the men she writes about reasonably sympathetic. Yeah, some are married and she likes to make out she had a hard time, and take the moral high ground. But she's quick enough to consider going there herself when she meets a charming, wealthy customer she's attracted to. Oh yeah, did I mention she's married herself?
Chelsea comes across like a hypocrite and totally in love with herself through most of this.
I borrowed this from the library and honestly I am glad I didn't add to Chelsea's earnings on this. However, for someone who has an interest in Japan or hostessing (Not Geisha's. Chelsea is really flattering herself with that one), it's probably worth the read still if you can borrow it. It's not especially well written, but it is a light read if you can get past some of the childish attitude and cultural insensitivity.
March 21, 2013
Chelsea Haywood, model, spent 3 months living and working in Japan – as a hostess. Hostess clubs are a Japanese phenomenon, employing young (usually) women as escorts/dates/conversational partners/friends/drinking companions for the ultra-wealthy customer (generally high-powered Japanese businessmen). Chelsea’s plan was to write an account of her experiences (success!), but she didn’t realize what an emotional toll the job would take. Although hostesses aren’t supposed to sleep with or date their customers, Chelsea found herself more involved with some of them than she was comfortable. And so many of them were crazy in one way or another. It was 90 days of late nights, little sleep, fancy meals, witty (and not so) repartee, and deflecting offensive comments and suggestions. Exhausting. She also got to see a side of Japan that most casual tourists do not, and in style, as her patrons paid for everything – travel, food, gifts, etc.
Chelsea is articulate and quite worldly (despite being only 21 when she was hostessing), and it’s hard not admire her fearlessness in some rather unnerving situations. Japanese culture is more baffling than ever to me after reading this, and also darker than I’d expected. This was absolutely fascinating.
Skim, perhaps, the bits where Chelsea waxes on about her wonderful relationship with her husband, Matt. It's definitely tested by her temporary profession and some of the situations she gets herself into.
Chelsea is articulate and quite worldly (despite being only 21 when she was hostessing), and it’s hard not admire her fearlessness in some rather unnerving situations. Japanese culture is more baffling than ever to me after reading this, and also darker than I’d expected. This was absolutely fascinating.
Skim, perhaps, the bits where Chelsea waxes on about her wonderful relationship with her husband, Matt. It's definitely tested by her temporary profession and some of the situations she gets herself into.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 26, 2011
Chelsea Haywood is not exactly a good writer, but this also is her first book so I can forgive her that. Maybe it's also because I read the Dutch translation that I didn't think it was that bad.
I didn't like that the title mentioned 'geisha' but I don't know if she got any say in that. Obviously she wasn't a geisha, just a hostess.
I enjoyed reading this book, despite its flaws. Chelsea wrote at the end of the book that some people didn't make it because they weren't interesting enough (according to others). That's a pity.
I've seen a documentary about (Japanese) hosts, it was quite interesting to compare it to this, to the job of a 'western hostess'. These hosts also have to lie constantly. Haywood seems to think this job is easier for Japanese people, but the documentary shows that although it is somewhat easier for them because they know how it works, it still takes a heavy toll on them, the nightlife, all the drinking and lies. Haywood didn't do this job for a long time but it took a heavy toll on her too.
I didn't like that the title mentioned 'geisha' but I don't know if she got any say in that. Obviously she wasn't a geisha, just a hostess.
I enjoyed reading this book, despite its flaws. Chelsea wrote at the end of the book that some people didn't make it because they weren't interesting enough (according to others). That's a pity.
I've seen a documentary about (Japanese) hosts, it was quite interesting to compare it to this, to the job of a 'western hostess'. These hosts also have to lie constantly. Haywood seems to think this job is easier for Japanese people, but the documentary shows that although it is somewhat easier for them because they know how it works, it still takes a heavy toll on them, the nightlife, all the drinking and lies. Haywood didn't do this job for a long time but it took a heavy toll on her too.
June 14, 2015
Okay, so....as someone who is self-admittedly addicted to guilty pleasures that run the gamut, I wasn't expecting a Pulitzer-prize-winning piece of literature. And anyone who DID? Well....clearly, we have different expectations. However, the topic intrigued me; I've never been to Japan and I've heard stories as to how one can get swept up in the lifestyle and Chelsea certainly did. She had a proper vehicle for doing so; bilingual middle-aged Japanese men who were willing to wine, dine (and entertainingly antagonize) her. She never expected to get attached to any of them -- but there's ALWAYS the proverbial ONE; a man known as Yoshi who pisses her off, woos her, threatens to never speak to her again and offers a spot for her at his apartment....and all in the same night! So give this girl a break: she's not winning any literary awards but considering the majority of the story has been recalled from several nights of her being intoxicated and trying to survive it's pretty damn entertaining.
January 31, 2010
Chelsea Haywood descends on the Roppongi district in Tokyo to work as a hostess at Greengrass. She is there to write on her 90 day adventured of the modern day geisha. She is also a young married woman, which is to never be known to the men she is entertaining. Chelsea learns that hostessing is more to do with the psychological aspect of the men she supposedly "loves" than the act of prostitution. She actually thinks she is falling for a guy named Yoshi, but realizes it is just his lifestyle not him that she loves. Chelsea learns alot about herself and what is real in her life and cherishes it even more.
I thought this book was hard to read at times with the broken english of the Japanese and the drug and alcohol induced accounts, but definitely hard to put down for even 2 minutes.
I thought this book was hard to read at times with the broken english of the Japanese and the drug and alcohol induced accounts, but definitely hard to put down for even 2 minutes.
May 16, 2019
This is truly one of the worst things I’ve ever read in my life. The author is unbearable and the writing is shamefully bad. It feels as though I’m reading the diary of a smug teenage girl. It’s also completely not interesting. Not that I am interested in the bar scene and escort girls of Japan, even given that this is boring...
I also cannot identify with the author at all and I find myself really disliking her. I feel embarrassed for her. I have read other reviews and I know what the future holds for her married life. I can completely see why, given the horrible boastful things she says about her contact with other men. Even her tacked-on glowing review of her husband at the start of this book would not be enough to apologize for her behavior.
I literally cannot push on with this as am giving up half way.
Do not bother with this book.
I also cannot identify with the author at all and I find myself really disliking her. I feel embarrassed for her. I have read other reviews and I know what the future holds for her married life. I can completely see why, given the horrible boastful things she says about her contact with other men. Even her tacked-on glowing review of her husband at the start of this book would not be enough to apologize for her behavior.
I literally cannot push on with this as am giving up half way.
Do not bother with this book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 21, 2010
First of all my problem with the book was mainly that Chelsea was not a geisha. She wore cocktail dresses, sang karaoke, went to beautiful places and was bought clothing - she was a hostess. A real geisha trains for years and years, performs tea ceremonies, wears a kimono and other traditional wear, does not go alone with a customer who buys her things.
Basically, it was misleading. I expected something else. Also was disappointed in how fast she fell in love with another man, almost considering divorcing her supportive, loving husband.
Were the stories interesting? Some. At the end of the book though I was bored and just wanted it to end.
Basically, it was misleading. I expected something else. Also was disappointed in how fast she fell in love with another man, almost considering divorcing her supportive, loving husband.
Were the stories interesting? Some. At the end of the book though I was bored and just wanted it to end.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 9, 2019
I read the opening pages, check a few reviews of the book on Goodreads, skip to the ending of the book, and find out the writer seems confused. I do not finish the book, and stop reading it.
I give the book a rating of two stars instead of one, appreciating the view into places that seem (otherwise) closed to gaijin - or foreigners - seen through the eyes of Ms. Haywood, during outings with one Fujimoto-san.
In one of these outings, the afore-mentioned Fujimoto-san ogles the exposed wrist of a hostess (not the author) who wears a kimono, who may not be entirely unaware of the eroticism of her seemingly deliberated movements which so bare her wrist.
I give the book a rating of two stars instead of one, appreciating the view into places that seem (otherwise) closed to gaijin - or foreigners - seen through the eyes of Ms. Haywood, during outings with one Fujimoto-san.
In one of these outings, the afore-mentioned Fujimoto-san ogles the exposed wrist of a hostess (not the author) who wears a kimono, who may not be entirely unaware of the eroticism of her seemingly deliberated movements which so bare her wrist.
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