Samuel Steward (1909–93) was an English professor, a tattoo artist for the Hells Angels, a sexual adventurer who shared the considerable scope of his experiences with Alfred Kinsey, and a prolific writer whose publications ranged from scholarly articles to gay erotica (the latter appearing under the pen name Phil Andros). Perhaps his oddest authorial role was as a monthly contributor between 1944 and 1949 to the Illinois Dental Journal, an obscure trade publication for dentists, w...

2010 National Book Award Finalist for NonfictionDrawn from the secret, never-before-seen diaries, journals, and sexual records of the novelist, poet, and university professor Samuel M. Steward, Secret Historian is a sensational reconstruction of one of the more extraordinary hidden lives of the twentieth century.An intimate friend of Gertrude Stein, Alice B. Toklas, and Thornton Wilder, Steward maintained a secret sex life from child...

The French effect on six food and wine writers, including Julia Child, M. F. K. Fisher, Alexis Lichine, A. J. Liebling, Richard Olney, and Alice B. Toklas.During les trente glorieuses—a thirty-year boom period in France between the end of World War II and the 1974 oil crisis—Paris was not only the world's most delicious, stylish, and exciting tourist destination; it was also the world capital of gastronomic genius and innovation. The Gourmands' Way...

A riveting memoir of escape from communist authoritarianism to a life in the arts in America. "There was no freedom here, no security, very little opportunity, and altogether too much corruption…" Marica Vilcek was just twelve years old when the Communists took over her country. Her prospects were curtailed, as a result, and when her brother vanished, apparently escaping to Western Europe, her family became blacklisted, reducing her hope for a future career in the sciences and arts. But in...

A biography of six writers on food and wine whose lives and careers intersected in mid-twentieth-century FranceDuring les trente glorieuses―a thirty-year boom period in France between the end of World War II and the 1974 oil crisis―Paris was not only the world’s most delicious, stylish, and exciting tourist destination; it was also the world capital of gastronomic genius and innovation. The Gourmands’ Way explores the lives and writings of six Americans who chroni...

Drawn from the secret, never-before-seen diaries, journals, and sexual records of the novelist, poet, and university professor Samuel M. Steward, Secret Historian is a sensational reconstruction of one of the more extraordinary hidden lives of the twentieth century. An intimate friend of Gertrude Stein, Alice B. Toklas, and Thornton Wilder, Steward maintained a secret sex life from childhood on and documented these experiences in brilliantly vivid and often very funny detail....

A queer historical romantic suspense novel about a young engineer working for Gustave Eiffel caught in a web of deceit that could destroy both him and the famous tower.Fin Tighe is clinging to respectability by his nail-bitten fingers. He may be the illegitimate son of an English earl, but he hasn’t spoken to his father in a decade, and his engineer’s salary is barely enough to support him and his cousin Aurelie. A dancer in the corps de ballet, Aurelie is...

NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD WINNER**NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY: The New York Times * NPR * Vogue * Gay Times * Artforum *“Gay Bar is an absolute tour de force.” –Maggie Nelson"Atherton Lin has a five-octave, Mariah Carey-esque range for discussing gay sex.” –New York Times Book Review**As gay bars continue to close at an alarming rate, a writer looks back to find out what’s being lost in this ...

A struggling novelist travels the world to avoid an awkward wedding in this hilarious Pulitzer Prize-winning novel full of "arresting lyricism and beauty" (The New York Times Book Review).WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZENational BestsellerA New York Times Notable Book of 2017A Washington Post Top Ten Book of 2017A San Francisco...

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Soak up the sun—and the intrigue—with the first novel in John Grisham’s beloved Camino series.“A happy lark [that] provides the pleasure of a leisurely jaunt periodically jolted into high gear, just for the fun and speed of it.”—The New York Times Book ReviewA gang of thieves stage a daring heist from a secure vault deep below Princeton University’s Firestone Library. Their loot is priceless,...

The legendary movie star's revelatory memoir is "a mesmerizing account of his Candide-like journey through Hollywood" ( The New York Times Book Review ).National BestsellerIn 1950, at the end of Hollywood's Golden Age, a remarkably handsome young boy, still a teenager, gets "discovered" by a big-time movie agent. The boy's name was Tab Hunter—a true Hollywood product, a movie star created from a st...

Inspiration for the Netflix Limited Series, Tales of the CityThe eighth novel in the beloved Tales of the City series, Armistead Maupin’s best-selling San Francisco saga.Following the success of his New York Times bestseller Michael Tolliver Lives, Armistead Maupin’s Mary Ann in Autumn is a touching portrait of friendship, family, and fresh starts, as the City by the Bay welcomes back Mary Ann Si...