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Biography
Deanna M. Lehman is an author, poet and artist living in Hailey, Idaho with her boyfriend, photographer David Seelig. Kinderwhore is her debut, autobiographical effort, although she has been a published poet, an art critic and writer for various publications and was creator and editor-in-chief for two zines, Pandora's Box, Lollygag and The Razor's Wine. She is currently the creator and editrix-in-chief for a contemporary journal called Neo and has contributed two new poetry forms to the discipline, One Wonder Wonders and PoetryFusion. Kinderwhore is the first of a four book series, which also includes Pandora's Box, Japanese Dreams and Some Girls Wander, all to be released in the near future. She is currently self represented.
Kinderwhore Synopsis
Deanna is a little girl physically, sexually and psychologically abused, leading to her removal from her biological mother's custody into foster care. After two failed adoptions, she becomes a troubled teen and is placed in mental institutions, a children's home, juvenile detention, a reformatory school and more foster homes, as a ward of the State of Ohio. Yet consistently throughout her journey of haunted hardships and wistful yearnings, she is still able to capture the joy and beauty of life, more precious for its rarity in her rootless, tumultuous existence.
Celebrity Blurbs about Kinderwhore.
"Kinderwhore is often a dark tale, but it's both lively and vivid. It's a book you'll remember."
- Richard Kadrey
New York Times Best Selling author
"Kinderwhore is one of the most harrowing things I've ever read, filled with a litany of real-life horrors that it makes your toes curl. It's also one of the best, most powerful things I've read in many years- and the staggered facts are that this is from a first time author and it is her own story."
- Robert L. Ross
Editor/writer for Popdose Pop Culture Magazine
"A tumultuous tale and wild ride of a read, Kinderwhore leaves us wanting more."
- Mike Diana
Underground comic artist of Boiled Angel
"A harrowing tell-all. A must read."
- Robert Heide
Author and writer for The Village Voice
“A very good, honest portrait of American culture. This raw, engaging account should be read by millions. I won’t forget Kinderwhore.”
- Peter Christian Hall
Author of American Fever: A Tale of Romance & Pestilence
Pandora's Box, Book II of the Kinderwhore Series.
Pandora's Box Synopsis
Deanna is a troubled teen, after moving from foster care in Ohio to her adoptive parents' home in Florida. She meets her first love, James Matthew Hartsfield, and starts her own underground literary zine, called Pandora's Box, while attending Gulf High School in New Port Richey, Florida, sparking a First Amendment controversy within her state. Deanna's turbulent relationship with her adoptive parents ends with her moving in with her boyfriend. She works as an exotic dancer, after school, and gives us a searing insider's view of the erotic entertainment industry. She gives readers insights into her developing maturity, psychologically, sexually and philosophically.
Celebrity Blurbs for Pandora's Box
“It is hard to believe that one woman has faced so many hardships and unwarranted necessities Deanna M. Lehman has not only suffered the trials of damnation, she poetically documents it. She's confronted her life experiences with...caeats that could help others.With her daring Kinderwhore book series, Lehman has brought her brutal misadventures within the reach of every reader who dares to share her tribulations. This book is a must for those who think these perils can't happen in our time.”
- Robert Williams
Artist, author and founder for Juxtapoz Art and Culture Magazine
“When I first read Deanna M. Lehman's Kinderwhore, I was both horrified and unable to put it down. I finished it in an afternoon. Now, she's written the second volue of her own story, Pandora's Box, and it's no less heartbreaking and riveting. No one should have to endure what she has, but her ability to stop, step back and look at it as a viewer and not the central figure of the action, makes her an even more compelling storyteller.”
- Robert L. Ross
Popdose Pop Culture News
“With the same rich descriptions and raw candid memories as her first, this coming-of-age autobiography reveals the insightful renderings of a young woman, scarred yet indefatigable, as she finds true friendship, love and a sense of identity.”
- Tina Fujita
Professor at Hillsborough Community College
“Pandora's Box, book two of the Kinderwhore series, by Deanna M. Lehman is a true mind opener. The misadventures of a troubled and tenacious young woman are chronicled as she learns about life and love after moving from Ashtabula, Ohio to Florida. Not only can truth be stranger (and more entertaining) than fiction, it can be more enlightening. Serious students of human nature will thrill to this rich harvest of insight and understanding Ms. Lehman reveals as she bares her soul. A must read.”
- Dale Michels
Author, Illustrator