Customer Reviews

Bunny Tales

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(22)
3 star:		(27)
2 star:		(21)
1 star:		(34)

 

 

I've seen the Girls Next Door, so I was curious about how the whole "girlfriend" things works. Izabella explained it. She explains how they were recruited, how much they were paid, and what was expected of them in and out of the bedroom. It is an interesting glimpse into a fantasy world that is maybe not so fantastic after all (which is, of course, not surprising).

That said, the book itself is terribly written. I don't think anyone proof-read it before it was published. The grammatical mistakes and obvious typos are too numerous to ignore. Izabella is obviously trying to profit as much as possible from her time at the mansion. She is also trying to justify her life there. Most of those attempts come off as fake and insincere. She talks about how horrible it was for the girls she didn't like to be using Hef for the wrong reasons, then announces she was never attracted to Hef (who she claims was a bad lover). Most of the book is about how much money and stuff she could squeeze out of this man she was not attracted to in the two years she lived at the mansion. He paid for her car, her clothes, her plastic surgeries, and gave her a weekly allowance but she complains bitterly he didn't pay for her school loans or get her the exact car she wanted.

Overall the tone of the book is a bit condescending and... misguided.

Do not waste your time or money on this useless, indulgent piece of self-promoting drivel.

I bought this book after reading an excerpt from it in a magazine. I wanted some fun, light reading to give me a break from studying for my bar exam. What I did not realize is that while the magazine had an editor, this book did not. St. James can no more write a clear sentence than she can hold an opinion.

If only the grammatical errors were the book's only problem. St. James is so busy sucking up to every famous person she ever met that, even if she criticizes them, she quickly recants with something insipid like "but they were nice!" She constantly critiques the other Girlfriends and playmates who pursued the same lifestyle as hers while valorizing her choice b/c she had "an education" (one that apparently did not include a single English course or creative writing seminar).

St. James is so busy trying to validate her choices as those of a strong, indepdendent woman that her insecurities and lack of intelligence are all the more glaring. Worse, she introduces each chapter with a random quote that she does not contextualize--her use of Milton is particularly appaling and demonstrates her lack of English 101.

I didn't expect this book to be brilliant or even witty, but I did expect it to be fun and frivilous. Unfortunately, St. James is so in love with herself and so hateful of other women--particularly those with whom she shared a boyfriend and career--that her bitterness (and last minute efforts at making nice lest anyone be mad at her) overwhelms what should be a frothy treat.

Here's hoping St. James gets herself a therapist, remedial English lessons and a women's studies class stat.

I could comment on the poor editing or the obvious typographical errors in the book - but this has been addressed in many of the other reviews.

Sadly, what stood out to me while reading this book is what a sad commentary this makes about how a woman can take advantage of a wealthy, older man. She meets Hef and states that from the beginning - she was not attracted to him sexually or physically. Yet, she decides to become a "Girlfriend" and is more than ready to accept her weekly allowance from Hef and request all sorts of expensive gifts like a car downpayment and plastic surgery. She clearly does not feel any great affection for the man, mocks his sexuality and describes how she laughed at him on numerous occasions and avoided his bedroom. She doesnt sound like much of a "girlfriend" to me. With friends like her - who needs enemies? Of course, she would have liked more. More cash really. She would like Hef to pay off her student loans from law school - and shockingly - he turned down some of her requests for money.

Throughout the book she continually mentions the fact that she graduated from law school - to impress us with the fact that she is really intelligent (of course, she has not been able to pass the bar), but working for a living does not seem to be too high on her list of priorities, or being grateful for everything she was given while in residence at the Mansion. The book is a disappointment and I found it to be a sad reflection of the type of woman that preys on a wealthy, older man. I am sure she is looking for the next one now.

and write for the National Enquirer. I read this book while still in Iraq. One of my soldiers passed me a copy. I have a very good friend who was a Playboy Bunny at the Lake Geneva Resort and later the Chicago Playboy Club. She spent time in both the Chicago Mansion in the late 60's and and the Playboy Mansion West. My friend asserts that Hugh Hefner is a kind and generous host, who conducts himself in a proper and dignified manner. No woman was ever forced to do anything she did not want to do. This book is sour grapes! Ms. St. James chose to live at the Playboy Mansion for 2 years and live off the generosity of Hugh Hefner. Nobody forced her to live there; and as much as I read, he treated her very well. I would expect gratitude to her host, not vindictiveness. Being a "law school graduate" perhaps she should cross-examine herself and take responsibility for her choices and actions in life. Grow up!

You do learn some interesting things in the book (regarding how the Mansion is laid out, the different parties they had, etc.) - however, Izabella should be thankful to Hef instead of nit-picking him. He gave her thousands of dollars worth of stuff while she was a girlfriend (clothes, makeup, allowance, medical/dental, cosmetic surgery, new cars, etc.)- but yet it was NEVER enough. She basically said that she was there to "have fun" and get what she could.

She complains in the whole book about Hef and the mansion's rules. She went to parties and new some of the girlfriends BEFORE she became a girlfriend - so she should have known the rules beforehand. She says that Bridget and Holly were goody to-shoes and did everything Hef wanted them to do. He was treating them like royality - I think I would have wanted to spend time with him and treat him a little nicer than Izabella did.

She complained about him being "a creature of habit" and doing the same things the same way all the time. It was HIS HOUSE she was living in - and HIS money he was spending on her. I think he had the right! She complained about not being able to stay at events very long. I would have been thankful just to be able to say I WENT. He gave them a $2000 allowance an event for clothes - yet sometimes that wasn't enough. He even gave them money to buy christmas presents for the other girls - and they tried to figure out a way to keep THAT money instead of use it on what he said to use it on. And then blamed Holly because she told Hef about it. I would have told him too - that is almost like stealing from him!

She complained on valentine's day all they got was playboy items - and no "diamond jewelry" or anything like someone in a normal relationship gets. Um - who said this was a normal relationship anyway? Geez!

According, to the show - Girls Next Door - it sounds like now - most of the "rules" have gone by the wayside. PROBABLY because he knew Holly, Bridget and Kendra would do what they were suppose to do. They gained his trust. Something Izabella and her friends never gained. Her and her friends would always try to find a way to get out of doing what Hef wanted them to do. I am sure it was obvious to him - they didn't care about him.
The final fight she had was with Bridget. She claimed Bridget was crying because Izabella sit by Hef in the car and she didn't get to. She went up to Bridget and called her a "BI***". She claimed she sit by him because she was leaving and it might be the last time she got to sit by him. She could have explained that to Bridget and talked to her nicely but instead she called her names. Then she couldn't believe Hef came over grabbed her arms and told her he was tired of the "sh**". Well, duh!??

The book was an interesting read - but I didn't believe lots of things she said - and I felt she was just there to get everything she could - just like some of the girls she complained about. They sure don't know how lucky they were - I would love to have stayed in the Mansion for a WEEK - or even a day let alone 2 years - WOW!!! People like this will never be happy with their lives - always wanting something better.

I got this book as a present and being a fan of the accomplishments of Hugh Hefner, I was really looking foward to hear about life at the mansion especially through the eyes of an ex-gf.

Unfortunately, the beginning chapters are a biography painting the author as a perfect little angel who rebels and enters the mansion after being choosen by Hef personally [she also adds that the other girls were hounding him and she didnt put in any effort]

She goes on to describe how Hef is terrible in bed, taken advantage of by the girls and how she felt trapped. She continues to tell stories of how she flirted and pulled scams on him while still attempting to portray herself as a victim.

She states in this book how she stayed with him for the money until she got back on her feet and in the same breath she says she is no where near a gold digger.

This book is contradictory and you'd be better of without it. Especially if you're fond of Hugh Hefner and the other girls [she reallyyy lays into Bridget]

hope this helps you! if you'd like to read it, buy it second hand and dont give money to this bitter woman!!

I think the author who wrote this book was awful for betraying Hef's trust the way she did. Some of the things she wrote....he must be so embarrassed. She sponged off this man for 2-1/2 years, yet the whole book she mocks him, makes fun of him and complains about what he wouldn't buy for her. She complains about his priorities yet she doesn't seem to notice something wrong with her own.

I wanted to read the book, its true. But that she even wrote it is horrible. Just another way to get money via her association with him. She betrayed his trust by writing such humiliating things. And she is an awful writer. English is her 4th language.....so what. Get an editor. Proof read. Her sentence structures are awful, there are many typos and she is constantly using words and phrases incorrectly in an attempt to make her writing sound more intelligent. It only makes her sound stupid.

She also makes the mistake of thinking people are buying this book because they care about her life outside of the playboy mansion. I dont care about the history of your native country of Poland or what happened to your family, about your life in Greece or Canada, about the guy you lost your virginity to, your college experience and all the guys you had relationships with. Just get onto the title of the book, "inside the playboy mansion". Dont be silly enough to think that people care about YOU and YOUR life, they want to know about HEF and HIS world.

So basically the writer shows herself to be selfish (she gets so much but it isnt enough), hypocritical (all the other girls are dumb blonde golddiggers but she is an educated woman looking for an experience) and she is cruel in her portrayal of a man who gave her so much, who she CHOSE to be with and honestly, expected very little from her in return.

On the otherhand, if you are looking for scintillating and graphic gossip, this is the book for you.

This book was an atrocious attempt at trying to remain relevant after Hef booted St. James out of the house. Her publisher really did her a disservice in pushing this book onto the public. From attacking the other girls to attempting to paint herself in a different light, failing miserably, I would recommend this book only for a good laugh due to the inconsistencies. Holly, Bridget, and Kendra are desperate fame seeking whores while she truly loves Hef in one breath, the next she's talking about the fit she pitched when he cut their allowance for parties from 2k to about 500 because the girls were pocketing the cash in addition to their "allowance" for living there. Calling the other girls conniving cheats while admitting a chapter or two away the frequency with which she cheated on Hef. Overall, the book was boring minutia from someone who really could have just stayed quiet or auditioned to be part of the THS on Hef and come out looking better.

Basically, I recommend reading the book, but with a grain of salt. Specifically:

- After absorbing the whole thing, Izabella seems like the catty one though she tries to make others look bad. She comes across like an entitled brat in several parts of the book. The part that struck me the most was she talked about how Hef will get them as much plastic surgery as they want, but he would not pay her law school loans off for her. True that may be a selfish priority on Hef's part, but why in the world would one expect anyone else to pay their law school loans for them? He's already paying for everything else for them. And she has the nerve to accuse other girls -- true or not -- of being a gold digger? Projection much?

I expected to finish the book having some sort of respect for her, but I do not believe she is any better than the people she bashes.

- This is probably the most poorly edited book I've ever read. In fact, I do not think it was edited at all. It reads like a draft; there are several spelling errors, sometimes commas appear in the middle of words, there are many run on sentences, etc.

*Very* often there are consecutive sentences and even paragraphs that say the same thing with similar but slightly different phrasing, like she wrote it two different ways and then never picked which phrasing she liked better. Where was the editor? This was the most distracting thing about the book, never knowing if the next paragraph would say the same thing.

- She is very inconsistent in describing her feelings about things. She whines about Hef not letting them have fun at parties, and a few paragraphs later expresses gratitude towards him for taking them to such fun parties. Same things about gifts, money, Hef, the other girls, etc. I understand that she has complex and conflicting feelings about some of the things that went on in the mansion, but several sections were not articulated as such and read as quite bizarre. Here again, an editor would have been helpful.

+ The only really good thing about this book is once you get past her autobiography, there is some interesting information about the mansion that I did not know beforehand. As for the interactions that went on, who knows.

Okay, so the writing is really pitiful. Was there an editor? Wow. I've honestly never read such poor writing in a published piece of work. It's like sixth-grade quality. That being said...this is some juicy stuff! I'd skip the first two chapters because they are BORING! She just talks about her life growing up in Canada. Do we really care? I didn't, and I don't think you will, either, so skip it. The really good stuff comes later in the book - I believe it's Chapter 12, "How to Make Love Like a Bunny." You KNOW that's the stuff we all want to read, right? Oh it's eye-opening, alright. More than you ever wanted to know about old Hef. Goooood stuff.