Eleven Minutes

Roxana by Daniel Defoe (1724)

Originally printed in 1724, Roxana: The Fortunate Mistress was published anonymously and only later attributed to Daniel Defoe, author of Robinson Crusoe and Moll Flanders. The novel appears as if it is a biography, which was a common trope among 18th-century fiction, as it was thought to appeal more to the public if readers believed the story was based on true events in a person’s life. The novel has an episodic quality to it and is not structured linearly, though there is an overarching plot of Roxana’s moral deterioration.

• Roxana on SuperSummary

Fanny Hill by John Cleland (1748)

Fanny Hill, sometimes known as Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure, is a novel by John Cleland that follows the life of the former sex worker Frances “Fanny” Hill. The novel was first published in London in 1748 and is considered one of the first erotic novels. It relies heavily on the use of euphemisms.

• Fanny Hill on SuperSummary

Maggie: A Girl of the Streets by Stephen Crane (1893)

Stephen Crane’s 1893 novella Maggie: A Girl of the Streets, depicts Maggie Johnson’s childhood in the poverty-stricken neighborhood of the Bowery, New York, and her adult slide into poverty and prostitution. Crane originally published Maggie under a pseudonym—perhaps concerned about how the novella’s gritty, realistic subject matter would be received—but it was reissued under the author’s own name after the success of his 1895 novel, The Red Badge of Courage.

• Maggie: A Girl of the Streets on SuperSummary

Mrs. Warren’s Profession by George Bernard Shaw (1902)

George Bernard Shaw’s play Mrs. Warren’s Profession features a former sex worker turned madam. The play is a social commentary that critically explores themes of morality and poverty.

• Mrs. Warren’s Profession on SuperSummary

Breakfast at Tiffany’s by Truman Capote (1993)

Capote’s novella Breakfast at Tiffany’s tells the tale of a New York writer and his connection to his unconventional neighbor, the young Holly Golightly. Holly is a runaway teen from the South now living in New York City. The memorable and eccentric Holly makes a living as a high-class escort while searching for true love and a lasting relationship.

• Breakfast at Tiffany’s on SuperSummary

Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden (1997)

Memoirs of a Geisha is a novel by American author Arthur Golden and narrated by a Japanese woman named Sayuri. The story begins when Sayuri (then known as Chiyo) is a child living in a fishing village with her parents and sister, Satsu. Her modest lifestyle is turned on its head when she meets a man named Mr. Tanaka, who not only runs a fishing company but, unbeknownst to her, also procures girls to work as geisha.

• Memoirs of a Geisha on SuperSummary

Tricks by Ellen Hopkins (2009)

Tricks, a young adult verse novel by Ellen Hopkins, is the first in the Tricks duology. It tells five separate stories that interweave to become a single story about growing up, making tough choices, and accepting who you are. The characters in Tricks are teenagers living across the US, and the novel looks at how each of these characters from different backgrounds becomes involved in the world of prostitution. Although their reasons vary, they all face similar challenges and dangers in this underworld; this is where their stories converge.

• Tricks on SuperSummary