
Never A $7 Wh*re by Toni Crowe is a short but frank and honest expose of how the author got trapped into a prostitution ring, as a young, teenage, mum, with a toddler. Toni, who, in later life did go on to much greater and better things than being a call-girl, explains how, as a young woman, she wanted desperately to model, to live the “glamorous” lifestyle she believed models indulged in. When a chance encounter with high-rolling pimp, Prince, on a railway platform as she returned home from her day job, seems to offer Toni the excitement and entry into the world of modelling, she ignores all the “red flags” and jumps in feet-first. By the time Toni realises the truth about her lover and the future that confronts her as a member of Prince’s stable, she goes into survival mode, firstly figuring out how to keep her morality intact, while living in a house of whores and secondly how to escape and break the bonds, Prince and his number one bitch, Baby, have over her.
As I said earlier, Never a $7 Wh*re, by Toni Crowe is short – too short in my opinion, but that being said, it in no way lessens the power of Crowe’s narrative and the salutary lessons that can be gained from her story of survival. Two things came shining through from this story. Firstly, Crowe’s absolute belief in herself and her own abilities to manage the difficult situation she found herself in. She never blames anyone else for her problems and understands that with the right mind-set and attitude, the seemingly impossible is always possible to achieve. As a reader, one can but marvel at her courage in the face of violence, drugs and the sleazy world of prostitution. Secondly, her book is a salutary warning to all young people to carefully examine the “opportunities” you are being offered. As the author so eloquently puts it, (paraphrased) “in the adult world, there is never offered, something for nothing. There is always a price to pay and someone to pay it to.” I did feel the book was too short but if it was intended as a primer to make me want to find out more about this amazing woman’s life, it did serve the purpose. I’m keen now to know how she turned her life around, after this experience, to become a senior executive in a number of Fortune 500 companies and others. This is a well-written and fascinating tale.
