Neon Wasteland

This pathbreaking book examines the lives of five topless dancers in the economically decastated "rust bels" of upstte New York. With insight and empathy, Susan Dewey shows how these women negotiate their lives as parents, employees, and family members while working in a profession widely regarded as incompatible with motherhood and fidelity. Neither disparaging nor romanticizing her subjects, Dewey investigates the complicated dynamics of performance, resilience, economic need, and emotional vulnerability that constitute the life of a stripper.