Only 13: The True Story of Lon - Softcover

Manzanares, Julia; Kent, Derek

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0977284107 ISBN 13: 9780977284108

Publisher: Only 13 Pubns, 2006

Synopsis

Only 13 is my life story. At 13, I ran away from an impoverished, rural Thai village, only to become involved in the sex-tourist industry meeting American and European men. Child prostitution was the only way that I could find to send money to my impoverished family. My entrance into this world was selling my virginity, for which I earned $1,200. I did this to make up for my father s death for which I was blamed, which occurred while he was searching for me. I also needed to pay for my sisters schooling so that they would never have to see sex-tourists as I did. I spent five years in the sex-tourist industry in Thailand before marrying to go to Switzerland. That trip lasted only 12 days. Upon returning to Thailand, I met up with a former customer who took me to Germany where I worked in a massage parlor, while at the age of 19, I looked only 15 years old, and received a premium from my customers. A bad relationship in Germany led me to Sweden where I worked as a stripper for two years before returning to Thailand and writing my story. I am now living in England. You will learn what it is like to be born a poor girl in rural Thailand. You will think my thoughts, feel my fears, understand my views, suffer my pain, and share my victory of leaving the industry. You will learn what it is like to be me.

About this title

From the Back Cover

I was alone and desperate, the Sex-Tourist havens beckoned me with open arms.

My culture holds all women to be not only inferior—but expendable.

From a child runaway, to a top earner in Thailand’s prolific sex industry, comes the story of a little girl in an impoverished land where girls aren’t valuable enough to educate, yet are expected to become the primary income earners--responsible for the basic needs and welfare of their families. By the time Lon was 18, she had been responsible for the sole support of her family for five years. After suffering a childhood filled with beatings, blamed for her fathers death, and denied further education at the age of 12, she ran away and soon sold the only item of value she possessed--her young and supple body. The more she earned by agreeing to the most perverted and degrading acts demanded by her foreign customers, the more money her mother demanded. An abortion at 15, followed by a suicide attempt, hundreds upon hundreds of clients, and the discovery and loss of her first love—all before she was 18—are only a part of her story. Her relentless determination to save her sisters from the same fate gave her the strength to endure, and to tell the unknowing world how the "Daughters of Isaan" must honor their family obligations, regardless of the cost to themselves.

About the Author

Julia Manzanares has served as an English-As-A-Foreign Language/ Intercultural Communication Instructor and Teacher-Trainer for the past 18 years with 12 years spent teaching abroad in Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East. She earned an M.A. in Psychology/Drama Therapy from California State University, Los Angeles and holds Certificates in TESOL and Neuro-Linguistics. Derek Kent earned his B.A. from U.C.L.A. He has served as an English-As-A-Foreign Language Instructor in the Middle East and Thailand for 15 years. He is now involved in providing educational opportunities, developing job and career training, and establishing a support center for disadvantaged young girls in Thailand.

About this edition

• Publisher: Only 13 Pubns
• Publication date: 2006
• ISBN 10: 0977284107
• ISBN 13: 9780977284108
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 362