Confessions from the Velvet Ropes: The Glamorous, Grueling Life of Thomas Onorato, New York's Top Club Doorman

I was pulled into this book from the very first page. Not only does it paint the real life experience with every word but it is written in such a lively manner that the sizzling times in NYC just pour through you. I especially loved the Heatherette piece. Could not stop laughing. Looking forward to Glenn's next book. Five Stars from Paris.

I love to read NYC celebrity gossip columns mainly because I love to imagine all the excitement going on in the Big Apple. I've heard about nightclub line ups and doormen and the horror of rejection. This book not only made me feel like I was standing next to the doorman getting an insider's view, but by the end of the book, I felt like I really knew Thomas and that I really had been there. I can't think of another book that's been able to make me forget I was reading a book. I laughed out loud - this book made me laugh out loud. It made me see that anyone can feel like a star - the glamor is in the attitude not the pocketbook. Confessions of the Velvet Ropes is like a guidebook to cutting edge NYC nightlife complete with tips on how to pull off a look, to get into the club and how to have a wild time without getting hung up on being an outcast from NJ. It was a thoroughly fun book to read.

are probably pretty unexpected adjectives for a book profiling someone known, not always affectionately, as "Door Bitch." But Belverio humanizes his subject with a behind-the-"behind-the-velvet-ropes" look at Onorato's decidedly unglamorous daily grind. Though the book has plenty of entertaining anecdotes and gossip, what I found most interesting were the details about the "day life" that supports NYC's nightlife. And Belverio's mini-history of famous doormen of the ages, people like Mark Benecke, Kenny Kenny and Derek Neen, also gives his book a fascinating historical perspective.

I dipped into the first page of this book, thinking I'd scan it for gossip. But I got totally caught up in Belverio's sharp, sardonic view of New York night life and couldn't put it down. The book has hysterically funny moments. It also updated me about what's happening NOW in the New York night scene. I've been going to clubs all my adult life but I never understood what makes a doorman tick as clearly as I do now. This was a fascinating read.The author has a finely honed wit and a great eye for detail.

This book will be a great read for anyone with even a passing interest in the frenetic worlds of nightlife, popular culture and downtown shenanigans. Others have made much of Belverio's penetrating wit and keen observations, and they're right to do so: he captures the drama, excitement and star-studded absurdity of New York nightlife in a way that deliciously satisfies one's darker cravings for gossip while at the same time shedding light on what it all means. It's entertaining yet thoughtful, funny yet smart--and, most of all, shows Belverio to be a truly great storyteller.