REVIEWS
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by Courtney Kocak
"“What I remember most about the first man was his penis smelling like baby powder and the driver waiting outside not saying a word before or after. I wondered if he had a book while he waited for me.”
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Midwest Book Review
"Sward creates an inspection that stands out from the plethora of memoirs about addiction, abuse, and recovery."
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by Alysse Bryson
"Swards ability to transform her tragedy into a beautiful narrative is nothing short of remarkable."​
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Allium, A Journal of Poetry & Prose
by Patricia Ann McNair
"Perhaps Strip would be categorized by some as an “addiction memoir,” but that seems too easy a label for what Sward accomplishes in these pages."
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"The author takes her childhood trauma and adult struggles with addiction and wields them like a literary sword. Her blunt, unadorned writing style is tremendously effective in the title’s diary-like chapters, making the evocative memoir readable in a single sitting."
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“The title of this affecting memoir refers to the author’s work as a stripper and sex worker, but it also functions as a description of her elegant prose, which is stripped of all sensationalism and demands for pity.”
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“If ever a story and its author were worthy of the accolades it has received, it’s the memoir Strip by Hannah Sward.”
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Readers’ Choice Book Award Finalist
“Sward’s story is heartbreaking. Her journey is inspiring.”
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by Francene Katzen
“Strip is an unbelievably beautiful memoir. Sward is so honest and raw in telling her story. She will have the reader laughing and crying all within a few pages of each other. An incredible story of hope and resilience.”
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by Glen Young
"Sward's memoir details climb through abuse and addiction toward hope."
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In Her Debut Memoir STRIP, Sward Bares More Soul Than Skin
by Melody Greenfield
"In baring more than just her skin, Sward taps into the universality of what it means to be human, and this is what kept me invested in her story."
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Keys to Recovery Newspaper
by editor-in-chief Jeannie Marshal
“Hannah starts her memoir with a heartbreaking paragraph in 'Part One: Childhood.' As soon as I read those first few pages I was hooked.”