Memoirs of an Accused Madam


Book Description

You will never view escort services in the same way again. This is an account that exposes a hidden world that many have preconceived notions about. There is always another side to the story. The story begins in early 1993, with the discovery of blocks on escort service telephone lines in Orlando area resort PBX systems during large convention bookings. The blocks began in the late 1980s and were not isolated to the Orlando area, but were also in operation in Las Vegas. The blocks have evolved in form, but still exist today. In 1992, Vicky Gallas opened escort services in Orlando, Florida. Two years later she became the focus of an intense criminal investigation that resulted in her arrest in late 2001, and subsequent jury trial and acquittal by the jury in 2003. In this hard-hitting memoir, she reveals how racketeering and organized crime charges were brought against her based on proof so flimsy that agents and prosecutors could not get a wiretap or a warrant to search. For anyone fascinated with the foibles of our criminal justice system, the sensational Orlando connection, and how escort services really work, this is a must-read book. This is a Second Edition and includes various updates throughout. Most aliases have been omitted.




Memoirs of an Accused Madam


Book Description

In 1992, Vicky Gallas opened escort services in Orlando, Florida. Two years later she became the focus of an intense criminal investigation that resulted in her arrest in late 2001, and subsequent jury trial. In this hard-hitting memoir, she reveals how racketeering and organized crime charges were brought against her based on proof so flimsy that agents and prosecutors could not get a wiretap or a warrant to search. The story begins in early 1993, with the discovery of blocks on escort service telephone lines in Orlando area resort PBX systems during large convention bookings. The blocks began in the late 1980s and were not isolated to the Orlando area, but were also transpiring in Las Vegas. Though there have been civil suits filed in Nevada and federal courts over the blocks by other victims of the conspiracy, to this day the practice has evolved and continues unabated by the powerful group that created the conspiracy so long ago. The real story is the relentless pursuit of Vicky Gallas by powerful people with so much to lose if the truth were to be exposed. For anyone fascinated with the foibles of our criminal justice system, the sensational Orlando connection, and how escort services really work, this is a must-read book.




On Her Own Ground


Book Description

Soon to be a Netflix series starring Octavia Spencer, On Her Own Ground is the first full-scale biography of “one of the great success stories of American history” (The Philadelphia Inquirer), Madam C.J. Walker—the legendary African American entrepreneur and philanthropist—by her great-great-granddaughter, A’Lelia Bundles. The daughter of formerly enslaved parents, Sarah Breedlove—who would become known as Madam C. J. Walker—was orphaned at seven, married at fourteen, and widowed at twenty. She spent the better part of the next two decades laboring as a washerwoman for $1.50 a week. Then—with the discovery of a revolutionary hair care formula for black women—everything changed. By her death in 1919, Walker managed to overcome astonishing odds: building a storied beauty empire from the ground up, amassing wealth unprecedented among black women, and devoting her life to philanthropy and social activism. Along the way, she formed friendships with great early-twentieth-century political figures such as Ida B. Wells, Mary McLeod Bethune, W.E.B. Du Bois, and Booker T. Washington.




Memoirs of Madame Du Barri


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The Memoirs of Lady Hyegyong


Book Description

Lady Hyegyong's memoirs, which recount the chilling murder of her husband by his father, form one of the best known and most popular classics of Korean literature. From 1795 until 1805 Lady Hyegyong composed this masterpiece, depicting a court life Shakespearean in its pathos, drama, and grandeur. Presented in its social, cultural, and historical contexts, this first complete English translation opens a door into a world teeming with conflicting passions, political intrigue, and the daily preoccupations of a deeply intelligent and articulate woman. JaHyun Kim Haboush's accurate, fluid translation captures the intimate and expressive voice of this consummate storyteller. Reissued nearly twenty years after its initial publication with a new foreword by Dorothy Ko, The Memoirs of Lady Hyegyong is a unique exploration of Korean selfhood and an extraordinary example of autobiography in the premodern era.










Madame President


Book Description

BEST BOOKS of 2017 SELECTION by * THE WASHINGTON POST * NEW YORK POST * The harrowing, but triumphant story of Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, leader of the Liberian women’s movement, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, and the first democratically elected female president in African history. When Ellen Johnson Sirleaf won the 2005 Liberian presidential election, she demolished a barrier few thought possible, obliterating centuries of patriarchal rule to become the first female elected head of state in Africa’s history. Madame President is the inspiring, often heartbreaking story of Sirleaf’s evolution from an ordinary Liberian mother of four boys to international banking executive, from a victim of domestic violence to a political icon, from a post-war president to a Nobel Peace Prize winner. Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist and bestselling author Helene Cooper deftly weaves Sirleaf’s personal story into the larger narrative of the coming of age of Liberian women. The highs and lows of Sirleaf’s life are filled with indelible images; from imprisonment in a jail cell for standing up to Liberia’s military government to addressing the United States Congress, from reeling under the onslaught of the Ebola pandemic to signing a deal with Hillary Clinton when she was still Secretary of State that enshrined American support for Liberia’s future. Sirleaf’s personality shines throughout this riveting biography. Ultimately, Madame President is the story of Liberia’s greatest daughter, and the universal lessons we can all learn from this “Oracle” of African women.