A Brooklyn-born poetry PhD moves west and finds her mojo. Approaching middle age, Edie Jarolim takes a brave step, something many people just fantasize about: She quits her job in travel publishing, leaves her hometown of New York City, and moves to Tucson, Arizona, to become a writer. This book, which tells tales from both sides of the travel editor's desk, proves it was a smart move. Her wickedly funny prose spares no one she encounters, least of all herself. Getting Naked for Money: An Accidental Travel Writer Reveals All is named for, and includes the story of, an assignment by a women's magazine to go to a nudist resort, undercover -- and uncovered -- but “revealing all” is also a metaphor for the way the author bares her heart. This memoir is often poignant as well as funny and smart.
Jarolim (Arizona for Dummies) shares tales from her extensive career as a travel editor and freelance writer in this lighthearted insider’s view of the travel industry. Opening with a 2003 travel assignment that required her to check into a nudist resort—replete with speculation about her fellow nudists plus a few irresistible puns—the narrative follows chronologically as she conveys the less-than-glamorous transformation travel publications underwent in the digital era alongside the creative challenges inherent to working in the industry (there are only so many possible riffs on a simple theme of bed, bath, chairs, and desk, she notes). The best pages are concise portraits of characters she encountered through her work, among them Dick Brooks, who recruited her to handle the Wall Street Journal Guides to Business Travel. Jarolim’s keen sense of humor coupled with her insider’s perspective add a fresh spin to this travel memoir. (BookLife)
