Amsterdam Exposed tells the true one-of-a-kind story of an innocent exchange student who moves to Amsterdam hoping to write a book about the red light district and everything that follows. It’s an American abroad story, and also a love story; it’s an uplifting tragedy, full of humor from beginning to end; it’s an Amsterdam survival guide; a sympathetic look at a societal problem; a little piece … little piece of policy; a sweet farewell to a world just about gone; and, ultimately, as close as you can come to a free trip to Amsterdam without leaving your couch. In sum, Amsterdam Exposed takes readers deep into the district on a journey never before possible, forever reshaping their understanding of one of the most famous tourist attractions in the world, and the women who work there. If you’ve ever spent time in Amsterdam, or dreamed of doing so, this book’s for you.
Awards
First Place, Memoir, Writer’s Digest Self-Published eBook Awards (2018)
First Place, Travel, Beverly Hills Book Awards (2018)
First Place, Travel, IndieReader Discovery Awards (2019)
Gold Winner, Travel, Human Relations Indie Book Awards (2019)
Second Place, Memoir, Reader Views Literary Awards (2019)
Winner, B.R.A.G. Medallion (2018)
Distinguished Favorite, Independent Press Award (2019)
Finalist, Best Book Awards (2018)
Finalist, International Book Awards (2019)
Runner-Up, Biography/Autobiography, London Book Festival (2018)
Endorsements
“One of the best reads of my life.” — Tommy Flanagan, star of Sons of Anarchy, Braveheart and Gladiator
“This is one fantastic book. An insider’s look at a world few understand. And I lived there. A real adventure. Get it. Read it.” — David Labrava, star of Sons of Anarchy, and author of Becoming a Son
“At its core, this important, brave and moving book is about being honest with ourselves and our own humanity . . . A love story unlike any other, this is a book everyone should read.” — Adam Rodriguez, star of Criminal Minds, CSI Miami and Magic Mike
“A beautifully therapeutic read . . . I loved it.” — Dougie Baldwin, star of Disjointed and Nowhere Boys
“Compelling, insightful, tense, heartbreaking, often humorous, but most importantly, never judgmental . . . It’s a truly enjoyable tale, an honest expose, and a helluva fun ride . . . one that I highly recommend you take.” — Michael Trucco, star of Battlestar Galactica and How I Met Your Mother
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When I visited Amsterdam for a conference in Y2K, I was astounded at the number of people riding bicycles. I felt like I was taking my life in my hands just to walk a block. The bicycles have the right of way there and there were hundreds of them near the station. After making my way along to the tram, I was taken by the beauty of the city: the canals and those tall narrow houses with decorative roof lines. The most shocking to me was the red light district that our group of scientists stumbled into one evening trying to find our way home after having dined out. Seeing the rows of picture windows with prostitutes in each one, flirting with the men that came close to their window, trying to entice them to come in for a visit, was exactly as I had heard it was, but experiencing it for myself, was actually quite shocking. One can’t see that without thinking, “Why would any woman choose to do that for a living?”
That question is what drove the author of this book to spend months trying to get just one interview with one of these prostitutes. The book tells more about the difficulties of doing research for a book, than the prostitutes of Amsterdam, It should be apparent that no one would actually want to talk about the situations that placed them in this position, whether it’s legal or not. The author managed to become acquainted with one of the prostitutes early in his quest, and he became friendly with her, but the interview he desperately wanted and she had promised, kept being postponed.
The author managed to draw me into his quest, let me experience Amsterdam again as it was when I was there, and kept me reading constantly. It couldn’t put it down. I experienced all of his excitement and his disappointments. It took this author 18 years to write “Amsterdam Exposed”, but it was an excellent read.
I received a free e-copy of #AmsterdamExposed from #NetGalley for an honest review.
Poignant. Intensely personal. Moving and unforgettable.
Amsterdam is a gorgeous city, arguably one of Europe’s most iconic, with its canals, bridges, distinct architecture, coffee shops, and public art. As Wienir artfully describes, a late night bicycle pedal through the city becomes a dazzling experience: “Biking through any European city in the still of night is transcendent, doing so in Amsterdam is divine.” But there’s a part of the city, the Red Light District, that is pretty on the surface, but filled with ugliness once you delve deeper.
Centuries old, the haunting red lights of the district illuminate women selling their soft bodies for hard currency behind curtained glass walls. This memoir takes the reader on a journey to the other side of those walls, into the dark side of beauty.
In this age of the #MeToo movement, the Bill Cosby sentencing, and the Kavanaugh hearings, if prostitution freaks you out, I get it. I, too, find the subject matter of the world’s oldest profession upsetting.
But this award-winning tale is about so much more than that. It’s about love, redemption, connection. About living in the moment, about making a difference. So read it anyway.
I’m glad I did. The book won this year’s Hollywood Book Festival, and I figured there was something special about it. I had traveled to Europe ten years before the author, and imagined his adventures outside of the district would remind me of a time when I carried my only worldly possessions on my back, and saw the world through fresh, innocent eyes. That was a pivotal time for me and I knew I’d enjoy a walk down cobble-stoned European memory lane. However, although I’d visited Amsterdam several times, the district was never part of the itinerary. Although it’s not exactly legal, the Dutch are more upfront about the profession. I was curious. What pulls a woman into prostitution? What is it like? Does she enter of her own free will? Is it as horrible as it sounds? Can she ever leave?
The author is drawn to the district, moth to the flame style. While in Amsterdam for an abroad semester of law school, he wants to meet a working woman, and tell her story. It turns out to be far more difficult than he imagined. None of the women want to have anything to do with him. He won’t have sex with them, or give them money, so they insult him and slam doors in his face.
After countless rejections on the rain-drenched streets of the district, he finally connects with a stunning woman named “Emma”, and she haltingly agrees to tell him her tale. But it isn’t easy for her to open up. Years of abuse and distrust have colored her perspective, and she stands him up, cuts short their appointments, and doesn’t return his calls. When she does eventually agree to a meeting at her home, Wienir even wonders if she could be setting him up for some sort of dangerous altercation with a boyfriend or pimp.
Finally, on the eve of his departure back to America, sitting on a couch in her apartment, Emma shares what it’s like, working under the ghostly red lights every night. It’s a gut-wrenching, sorrowful conversation. Cue the thunder, lightning, and downpour. Even your umbrella won’t save you now.
But it turns out there’s much more to Emma and her story than meets the eye. No spoilers here. Let’s just say that her story is intense and unforgettable. Although the author does a striking job illustrating scenes of the city, it’s Emma who lights up the tale, stealing the show.
If you’re open to learning about the sexual underbelly of Europe, and hearing the occasional graphic description, Emma’s account, once heard, can’t be unheard. You’ll walk away with your heart not broken, but broken open, seeing that love glows in even in the darkest corners. As Wienir quotes Anne Frank, “I don’t think of all the misery, but all the beauty that still remains.”
I liked the book of the authors journey to Amsterdam to spend a semester continuing his law studies, and also to get material for a book he had been wanting to write, since his first visit there as a young man. He wanted to write about the red light district in Amsterdam, and find out what it was like for the girls behind those windows, and how they got there.
I liked the story of his time there, the people he met and his daily life with friends and trying to research for his book.
He knew he could not get too involved with the women he tried to interview, but that kind of backfired, in that non of them would give him the time of day, as that was something not of interest to them, no money to be made, meaning no business. He finally had a breakthrough when he met Emma, and she seemed open to giving some information, after a lot of back and forth short encounters he finally got his chance at an interview.
Through this whole process he and Emma became friends and he even fancied himself caring for her, and she for him.
I guess in a way he got what he wanted with that interview on the last day he was in the Amsterdam, but I don’t know if this was what he intended having only the opinion of one prostitute and not many to make comparisons on why they chose to enter and stay in this field. Emma’s life story was a hard one and I think he probably did make a difference in her life.
It was a well written and interesting story.
I would like to thank NetGalley and De Wallen Press for the ARC of this book.
When I visited Amsterdam for a conference in Y2K, I was astounded at the number of people riding bicycles. I felt like I was taking my life in my hands just to walk a block. The bicycles have the right of way there and there were hundreds of them near the station. After making my way along to the tram, I was taken by the beauty of the city: the canals and those tall narrow houses with decorative roof lines. The most shocking to me was the red light district that our group of scientists stumbled into one evening trying to find our way home after having dined out. Seeing the rows of picture windows with prostitutes in each one, flirting with the men that came close to their window, trying to entice them to come in for a visit, was exactly as I had heard it was, but experiencing it for myself, was actually quite shocking. One can’t see that without thinking, “Why would any women choose to do that for a living?”
That question is what drove the author of this book to spend months trying to get just one interview with one of these prostitutes. The book tells more about the difficulties of doing research for a book, than the prostitutes of Amsterdam, It should be apparent that no one would actually want to talk about the situations that placed them in this position, whether it’s legal or not. The author managed to become acquainted with one of the prostitutes early in his quest, and he became friendly with her, but the interview he desperately wanted and she had promised, kept being postponed.
The author managed to draw me into his quest, let me experience Amsterdam again as it was when I was there, and kept me reading constantly. It couldn’t put it down. I experienced all of his excitement and his disappointments. It took this author 18 years to write “Amsterdam Exposed”, but it was an excellent read.
I received a free e-copy of #AmsterdamExposed from #NetGalley for an honest review.