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Rating: 
Summary: No, it isn't pretty...
Review: ... but it is brutally real.
If you are looking for fantasy fodder, look elsewhere. This is reality, raw and unpolished.
Vi is one of the Mothers of the modern BDSM scene. She put her life out there so that others could learn from her mistakes. Anyone who ever thought it would be a good idea to sign their life completely over to someone should be made to read this book before they continue along that path. As the saying goes - Be careful what you wish for.
This book is an emotional roller coaster. When Mother Vi writes about her mother I was moved to tears. I felt angry for her when she was "forgotten" by her owners. The thing that drove me to turn the page was the realization that this is as real as it gets. This happened.
If you've been in the scene long enough, some of the players will sound familiar. This just adds to the weight of its truthfulness. And although there are always several versions of the truth, rarely will you ever find someone with the guts to tell their version of it with such frank honesty.
Mother Vi lays it all on the line so that we may learn and grow. To that I say "Thank You."
Rating:
Summary: Painfully honest...
Review: As an Old Guard submissive, I was amazed by Vi Johnson's diary. I, too, am expected to keep a journal but the depth of mine does not compare to hers. Expectations differ by Dominant. While my Dominant does not expect me to construct a dungeon in Her home and would absolutely kill me if I were to turn to drugs, She does expect me to change in the ways She considers to be growth. This isn't easy but, after reading this book, I now appreciate how much my Dominant cares. I highly recommend this book to any submissive who thinks there's more to BDSM but doesn't know where to look.
Rating:
Summary: Painfully honest...
Review: I couldn't even get through this book, it is sooooo poorly written...if you care the least about words, grammar, sytax, details, and compelling story, this so is not the book for you...
Rating: 
Summary: A real portrait of an "Old Guard" Slave
Review: I got this book as a gift, and started reading it voraciously. I got it to learn what the Old Guard way of life was. I, too, am a Dominant Woman, and I play 100% SSC, but some of the things that Vi was put through was just plain bordering on abusive. there is a very fine line between what we do and abuse, I know.. I remain appalled with the way she was treated by some of her "owners". Yet, she never complained, except in the pages of her journal. So, to say that it was abusive may be too harsh. Yet, abused women rarely, if ever, speak up in vanilla worlds or safeword in a BDSM world... or even begin to know how to save themselves from more pain. If I was reading reviews, and trying to decide whether to buy this book or not, I would advise to read it more for the informative nature of this type of servitude, a book to learn more about "Old Guard" type of BDSM.. or even to learn how not to do things, if you are budding Dominant. It was very obvious that Vi loved her tormentors, but I wonder if the first 2 loved her in the least. I started to read this book, because I wanted to learn about the "old" way of BDSM.. Boy, did I ever. No thank you.. and that is, as they say, our choice.. no?
Lynne
Rating:
Summary: Be glad it isn't your past
Review: I have many people who go on and on about the "good old days" of SM -- frankly I think their romantic notions need a bit of checking and this diary does it. It is a bit difficult to follow because it is in diary form. You will be shocked, you will be frightened, and you may be turned-off especially if you came into BDSM in the 1990s when SSC because was pretty standard. Because it is a diary, because it attempts to look at Johnson's life, there is little reflection or questioning of the events and people protrayed though there are entries where such analysis does appear it is still from within the mindset of an "old guard slave". For people who "pine for the good old days" this can be a reality check but it may not have been the average reality for every person in the SM lifestyle in the 1970s and 1980s.
Rating: 
Summary: Not Quite an Icon
Review: Overall an adequate book and does describe a woman who is following her dream. A bit difficult to read and follow but, then again, all Diaries (except The Diary of Anne Frank) are difficult to follow unless one was the one who lived that particular life. Could serve as material for another book perhaps? Too many questions arise such as why are there no pictures of the main characters such as Queen Cougar and Mistress Jill Carter? Readers should know shouldn't they especially when there IS a photo of Viola Johnson? Another question arises is why doesn't the author, Viola Johnson, comment more (either pro or con) on the use of drugs in her "family" and why doesn't the author comment on the presence of the production of Pornography that her "family" seems to need to support itself? As an African-American woman, how could she justify to African-Americans and African-American women in particular that she IS a slave? There are more questions that arise that are left unaddressed in this diary -- no Prologue, no appendices, no references, no dedication, etc exist to explain anything. More could have been done to help make the events in this book make much more sense or even to convey appropriate messages to younger generations than what was accomplished here. This book is okay and accurate from the Old Guard perspective, but fails to lift Ms. Johnson to an Icon status where many now place her.
Rating: 
Summary: Interesting lifestyle, character but mixed execution
Review: This book is a reprint of a real live slave's journal. This work affords an opportunity to peer into the life of one of the few people whom have had the courage and strength to devote themselves to true 24x7 servitude. However, you should be prepared for the fact that a slave's journal is not intended to be literary masterpiece and you will often find yourself wishing for more detail about events or the thoughts of others. It is rare to get a real, unhyped view into the hardcore S&M scene, which makes this book potentially interesting. However, just like many things, real life isn't always as exciting as fantasy.
Rating:
Summary: the truth, plain and simple
Review: Vi Johnson has written one of the best first hand accounts of consensual slavery ever written and provides a perspective from well before BDSM was nearly as popular as it is today. I could not put the book down, except to make myself digest sections of it before going on. This is not a "how to" book, nor is it romance, though the love she has for the people in the book does shine through. This is not a book intended for one handed reading, its not racey or sexy nor does it cater to fantasy. What it does provide is the truth in a no holds barred account about one persons first hand experences.
Rating:
Summary: This book seperates the TRUTH from the fantasy.
Review: WOW!!! If you are submissive or have ever dreamed of being a 24/7 slave you've gotta read this. Masters tell the story one way, this woman tells it no holds barred.
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