While it seems that Slim’s life story was fictionalized to protect the still living acquaintances mentioned in his novel, it is purported to be quite autobiographical. Still, there are some pretty outlandish coincidences and other things that are hard to believe, even with the knowledge that things were different in the forties. No doubt, Slim was a hardened criminal from the get-go. He idolized pimping and the control pimps had over women. His account is bleak and gruesome. He’s violent and has no respect or care for anything other than money. It’s a disturbing book to read. While Slim’s narration in the unique street lingo of the MCM pimp is quite entertaining to read, what he chooses to exclude or breeze past in his narration is sometimes perplexing. It would better be subtitled, “The Story of My Rise” because once he becomes a successful and notorious pimp he skims through his career quickly, choosing to focus on the mistakes he made which landed him in prison. It seems Slim wrote this account to warn young men off the pimping game, to show them that even when successful it isn’t as glamorous as it looks, but you can tell that hidden beneath is a longing for a life he once had and is no longer suited for.