About book 90-Day Geisha: My Time As A Tokyo Hostess (2008)
I came across Chelsea Haywood´s pompous self-aggrandising account of her time as a gaijin hostess purely by chance on the shelves of my local Poundstretcher. As if this wasn´t enough of an indication of its literary value, it was part of a 2 books for a pound offer. Dull, dreary book chock-a-full of wooden money-oriented characters totally bereft of psychological depth and like its main character, little to no chance of development. 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.
Do You like book 90-Day Geisha: My Time As A Tokyo Hostess (2008)?
Definitely allows one to experience what 90 days hostessing would be like. Thoroughly entertaining!
—SydMom
Crazy inside view into tokyo's night scene and the art of being a hostess. Very entertaining.
—Marinapavlishina
