Champagne Salary: Diary of a Tokyo Hostess

By Rose Beach

Champagne Salary is Rose Beach's personal account of her introduction to the Japanese hostess industry, including the myth and the reality. Sharing a tiny apartment with five other women in Roppongi, she is immersed in the world of Tokyo nightclubs where she, along with her new friends, deal with dress codes, curfews and strict expectations from club managers. Within the clubs, she meets many colorful characters, develops friendships, risks danger and discovers love.

Raised on a small farm in the rural northwest, Rose grows frustrated with waitressing and struggling to earn money for college and a music career. When a friend tells her about the hostessing industry in Tokyo, where pretty western girls can earn huge salaries for lighting cigarettes, pouring drinks and singing karaoke in clubs, Rose decides to take a chance. Along the way she is transformed by Tokyo and returns to Canada with a new strength and perspective about her own life.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Pegasus Books
• Release date: Aug 19, 2012
• ISBN: 9781301443970

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