Hustled: My Journey From Fear to Faith [Hardcover]

Tonya Flynt-Vega (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 1998

As the daughter of pornographer Larry Flynt, Tonya Flynt-Vega experienced firsthand the inside of the Hustler empire. But years of abuse left her shattered and acting out in self-destructive ways. Finally, she overcame her fear of her father and fled the man and his world that offered her wealth and glamour. She turned to the church, learning to love God and to forgive those who nearly destroyed her life--and learning to accept herself.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

If you thought Frank McCourt's childhood memories were bad, wait till you read Tonya Flynt-Vega's. Hustled: My Journey from Fear to Faith is a cautionary tale about the power of pornography as well as a memoir about growing up with Hustler publisher Larry Flynt for a dad. Needless to say, it's not a pretty story. But from the sensational, tragic details of Larry Flynt's bestiality, mental illness, incestuous molestation, and sexual addictions, Tonya Flynt-Vega manages to construct an autobiography whose literary deficiencies are mostly redeemed by her spiritual strength: in the end, Flynt-Vega overcame her earthly father's sexual and emotional abuse by discovering her heavenly Father's paternal love. And if Flynt-Vega's argument that pornography is inherently evil fails to persuade, her testimony of its potential to erode trust within families and to warp intimacy between lovers still comes close to being heartbreaking. --Michael Joseph Gross

From Publishers Weekly

Continuing her very public campaign against her father, Larry Flynt, the publisher of Hustler and other pornographic magazines, Flynt-Vega puts into print what she has been saying for years: that her father's pornography empire "may be the greatest menace in America today" and that he robbed his own daughters of a decent childhood by abusing and sexually molesting them. Flynt-Vega chronicles her desperate journey from emotional and physical devastation to a healthier lifestyle, a change she says occurred because of her developing faith in God. The book is not for the fainthearted, for it details both her own and her parents' thoroughly wretched upbringings, describes the incestuous relationships Flynt allegedly had with his daughters and details what the author casts as his prevailing mental illness. Flynt-Vega offers a constant rebuke to the 1996 box-office hit, The People vs. Larry Flynt, which portrayed her father as a stalwart, albeit disgusting, champion of free speech. Although the text is solidly written, thanks to the work of Schwartz, it is not flawless. Flynt-Vega borders on histrionic in some of her descriptions of Flynt's relationships to the people around him. She also takes cheap shots at one of her siblings. For the most part, though, she has successfully stepped back to describe the frenzied, trashy and tragic life and career of Larry Flynt as well as her own pilgrimage to faith.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 310 pages
• Publisher: Westminster John Knox Press; 1st edition (March 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0664221149
• ISBN-13: 978-0664221140
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,114,075 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 66 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It's really "Larry Flynt vs. The People", August 30, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Hustled: My Journey From Fear to Faith (Hardcover)

With Larry Flynt as your father, you're starting life with several strokes against you, but Tonya Flynt-Vega is a survivor and Hustled describes the ordeals against which she had to survive.

Despite the recent movie that glamorized Larry Flynt as an eccentric defender of the first amendment, anyone grounded in reality can easily see through that façade and identify him as a woman-hating, solipsistic pervert. His daughter adds even more fuel to a healthily burning fire. She describes his boastful bestiality, womanizing, drug-use, flag-desecration (fortunately that was back when it was still a crime), and his unnatural twisting of the First Amendment to make it serve his own ends rather than what it clearly states.

Perhaps most controversial-but not at all surprising-is the description of his incestuous abuse of her as a little girl. Larry Flynn has preposterously denied this charge. Obviously, he would go to jail if he admitted it, but a man who has made a career out of celebrating rape is a bit hard to believe when he claims innocence of that very same crime. His physical degradation of her is typical of the behavior he espouses and exemplifies. She details many of his affairs and the overall objectification of women on which his empire is founded.

Still, this book remains far more than a "Daddy Dearest"-type hatchet job. It is a caveat on the pernicious nature of pornography. Far from the "victimless crime" myth and Larry Flynt and his myrmidons perpetuate, Tonya details the destructive nature of this cultural pollution. She introduces us to a few girls who naively believed it was a stepping stone to a movie career only to become trapped in its ruinous vortex. Perhaps the saddest example of all, however, is her own father's pathetic life. Tanya recounts the situation of twenty-some years ago when Larry Flynt flirted with Christianity after a meeting with Jimmy Carter's Evangelical sister. The book portrays him as a lost soul who was at that time searching, and Tanya believes he was legitimately tempted to abandon his life of perdition. Tragically, its pull was too great, and he became even more blasphemously hostile.

While Hollywood's fictional snow job slandered several brave souls who dared to stand up to him, this book shows the heroic actions of Jerry Falwell in bring suit against Flynt. Ruth Carter Stapleton who is expectedly dismissed by Hollywood's agnostic crowd is shown to be an intelligent woman of unbelievable compassion and kindness.

Overall the book is a very good insight into the psyche of one of President Clinton's strongest supporters.

13 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Pure Fiction, July 2, 2006

By 

In The Know "In The Know" (Somewhere In Florida) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hustled: My Journey From Fear to Faith (Hardcover)

Ok, since I konw this woman personally and have worked with her in the past when she was a radio show host, I can tell you from personal experience that this whole book is a load of it. This woman has written a wonderful fictional story, but not a shred of truth. I sincerely hope that people will not be swayed by her seemingly honest and "poor pitiful me" point of views. For someone who supposedly hates her Father, she sure held on to his last name to try and make a buck didnt she?

2 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Praise God!, December 27, 2009

By 

realgirl38 - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hustled: My Journey From Fear to Faith (Hardcover)

I believe Tonya. I honestly don't know why anyone would make something so horrible up. I am sure that woman has better things to do with her time. I am so glad the Lord gave her grace and enabled her to have a second chance at a truly blessed life. Just like Job in the bible! God is great and merciful!