“The first time I traded my body for money, I was eight years old. I made twenty-five cents that day.” So begins The Making of a Madam, local author Patsyann Maloney’s recently self-published memoir with Wayne Holmes. Presented in short chapters with titles like “An Inappropriate Touch,” “First Sex,” The Lost Child” and “Brothel Life,” Maloney tells her story in an evocative, straightforward prose style that reveals its troubling/pulpy subject matter — from sexual molestation at age 6 to five marriages to being jailed by the FBI for running a brothel in Newport — with surprising restraint. And, given her abusive childhood (and beyond), Maloney seems to have come out the other side better than one might expect. From the epilogue: “I’m sixty-eight, nearly thirty years removed from the brothel and prison years. I drive a taxi, attend church, spend time with my children and volunteer in prison ministry.” Maloney discusses and signs her colorful life and book, which is rife with local flavor, 6-9 p.m. Friday and 2-5 p.m. Saturday at Sin City Antique Gallery (822 Monmouth St., Newport).
Get details and find nearby bars and restaurants (or strip clubs) here.
