My Life in Porn: The Bobby Blake Story

This was one of the most remarkableist book I have ever read, It is well worth the money and time.

Bobby Blake (Edgar Gaines) is a very interesting person. Of course, he looks good! However, this book allows the reader to get to know Edgar Gaines, the person. I had the opportunity to meet and talk with Edgar very briefly about ten years ago. I hope I will have the chance to talk with him in person again someday! Anyone who has enjoyed watching Bobby Blake movies should also enjoy this great book!

Bobby Blake is a very interesting person, and that is revealed in his memoir. Although the memoir is written with British writer John R. Gordon, the voice of Blake is clearly in this work. Despite the stereotyping of porn stars, Blake is very intelligent, insightful and political. After hearing him in interviews, it is obvious that the man is quite articulate. This work is a candid look at his private life as well as his career in porn, and he makes it clear that working in porn was a career, and not the beginning and end of his personality. Blake allows the reader to see the person, or alter ego, of the porn persona, and one will find that interesting, controversial and enlightening. Blake provides a very insightful look at the porn industry, and this is very welcomed from a black person's point-of-view. Much of the literature about pornography is about white porn stars, written from a white point-of-view, which rarely handles any discussion of race. In addition, Blake explains his decisions made personally and professionally. I respect that he doesn't name individuals (unless they are already well known in the porn industry, for instance) because the work is about his life, not theirs. If there is a major message in this memoir, it is that by stereotyping people, and putting them in boxes, you don't realize the full spectrum of those various personalities. He is still a young man, and one might wonder if he decided to write this work too soon. Even so, the work is well timed, and include a wealth of information.

I enjoyed reading this book a lot. I did find myself re-reading many paragraphs to get the meaning correct--not that it was a confusing read, but instead I wanted to make sure I understood where the author was coming from. Mr. Blake took a big risk exposing himself like this, letting his feelings and vulnerabilities out for all to see. Regarding the first few chapters, I really enjoyed reading about the many forces that came together to shape him. Everyone has a story to tell about how they came to be who they are. I personally always enjoy learning about what makes a person, any person, tick, but I found Mr. Blake's story much different from what I expected. Throughout the book there were many sad moments, and while I didn't mind reading about them, I had to stop reading a few times because things like remembering different friends/family dropping like flies in the 80s, the pains of breakups, let-downs by friends, etc. His thoughts on church and religion were particularly well written. It made me think: Can you imagine what would happen to so many of these churches if every gay and lesbian, bi and transgendered person just got up and left???? I have been for a good church over the years because of this, and am still looking for a good fit for me in NYC that is inclusive without me having to part of an exclusively gay congregation. I found the porn industry chapters fascinating. These are the parts of the book I had to read twice, particularly the rivalry chapters (Bam, Tiger Tyson, etc.). At first I thought, "is this guy for real? he seems a bit full of himself" but after re-reading it, its not that at all. In business, regardless of the industry, you have to be smart, sometimes ruthless, and cunning. God gave us wisdom and cleverness to work our way through the minefields of life. This is exactly what Mr. Blake's done, and in spades! Well done. It's great that he wrote about how he stood up for himself within the porn industry. Some people are naive enough to believe that in the porn industry, people are so liberal and open-minded that they are all passed the racist and ethnic hatred and bias found in other industries. His book is an important tool for the young ones looking to get into the industry, a reminder that things have changed, but not completely, and the best defense is a strong sense of self, confident and proud. But the chapters about Flexx-Deon were very sad. I'm glad he wrote about the experience, and I hope people don't think its just him "throwing him under the bus" as they say. I don't know Mr. Flexx-Deon so I won't put his life o the spot, but speaking in broader terms it's true that so many gay guys don't plan for their future, particularly hispanic and black gays. They don't spend their money properly. They don't think about their needs 10 years from now, or even 10 weeks from now, living check-to-check. They don't think about what will happen if they lose their jobs ( guess they move back home or live with fam

"My Life in Porn" reads like a great American novel. It's gives in great detail the rise of the most popular black gay porn star in our lifetime. However, this book goes a lot deeper than just porn. Bobby open's up his heart and shows his inner soul. Mainstream fans will love this book as well, sure some of them will be turned off once the realize who Mr. Blake is, but if they give this book a chance they will recognize its greatness.