Books: Living Right

The critically acclaimed novelist behind top 2014 bestseller Yellow Crocus, Laila Ibrahim tackles a subject directly out of the headlines in Living Right. 

An intimate story about a mother’s struggle to reconcile her religious beliefs with her son's sexual orientation, Living Right strips away the politics of LGBTQ rights to reveal the life and death stakes in this ongoing conflict: family.

Books: Male Sex Work and Society

Male Sex Work and Society gives you a snap-snot summary of what we know about male sex work from every major disciplinary approach. Leading contributors survey the gamut from psychology, sociology,
social services, economics, mental health, history,
criminal justice, film studies, geography,
migration studies, and more.

Books: MY THINNING YEARS: Starving the Gay Within

MY THINNING YEARS: Starving the Gay Within is the gripping true story of Jon Derek Croteau, Ed.D., a man who struggled with his own sexual identity while trying to earn the love and respect of his emotionally abusive father. 

Ashamed, Jon decided there was only one way to rid himself of the feelings that grew inside him: to starve them out. He felt compelled to punish himself for who he was and soon grew an insecure perception of himself to the point that anorexia, bulimia, and obsessive running became an everyday routine. This deadly combination threatened his life until he found peace and love, which saved his life.

Books: Stone's Throw

Stone's Throw describes the social, political and personal context that framed the emergence of one of the most critically acclaimed New York artists of the late-20th century, Felix Gonzalez-Torres. The book attests to the importance of relationships forged throughout the most challenging years of the North American AIDS crisis, as Deitcher recounts his friendships with Gonzalez-Torres, with the activist curator Bill Olander, and the milieu to which they belonged.

The title, Stone’s Throw, refers to the resonating effects on the author of a single sentence by Carl Andre: “My sculptures are masses and their subject is matter.”  Gonzalez-Torres brought that sentence to the author’s attention soon after Deitcher accepted the artist’s invitation to write the introductory essay for the catalogue that accompanied Gonzalez-Torres’s 1992 project for Magasin 3 Konsthall (Stockholm).

Now, twenty years after Gonzalez-Torres’s death, Deitcher revisits many of his most celebrated works. Stone’s Throw strikes a balance between personal remembrance and cultural analysis, and is richly illustrated with previously unpublished ephemera and full color reproductions of poignant works by, among others, Nayland Blake, Tony Feher, Jim Hodges, and Roni Horn. In its combination of critical re-evaluation and personal testimony, Stone’s Throw marks a further development in Deitcher’s commitment to writing intimate art histories. 

Books: Best Gay Erotica of the Year, Vol. 1

In honor of its 20th anniversary, Rob Rosen takes Best Gay Erotica of the Year, Vol. 1 to the next level of male-on-male erotic reading. There is something included for everyone from erotic male fantasies, to on-your-knees kink, casual hook-ups, highly charged street encounters and dark backroom passion. These down-and-dirty page-turners feature in-depth characters that reflect gay lives. The men in this collection let their lust and sexual desire loose for all to read.

Books: Gym Boys

The gym is no longer for working out and lifting weights according to Shane Allison’s Gym Boys. 

Allison takes us into the erotic world of hard-working men who like to work out along with hard-body builders and the guys who desire them. Whether in the steam room, locker room or in the shower these masculine men know how to work hard and play harder after a long workout session. Fantasies soon turn into reality for these hunks and their lusty clients. Allison’s male-on-male action takes you behind closed doors and reveals a confession that will make you enjoy a taste of strength and power on a whole new level of gay erotic.

Books: Denver's Mate (A Gay Werewolf Romance)

In Denver's Mate (A Gay Werewolf Romance), there's more going on than they first realized when two of the pack's children go missing. And desperate times can lead to strange bedfellows...

When two of the pack's children go missing, Denver takes point in the investigation. Unfortunately, the trail leads him to the tigers. Historically, not a group they've gotten along with.

But in the interest of the children, he's willing to team up with Elliot to get to the bottom of the case.

Sure, he's a tiger. But a cute one...

Books: The Gay Revolution

The sweeping story of the modern struggle for gay, lesbian, and trans rights—from the 1950s to the present—based on amazing interviews with politicians, military figures, legal activists, and members of the entire LGBT community who face these challenges every day.

The fight for gay, lesbian, and trans civil rights—the years of outrageous injustice, the early battles, the heart-breaking defeats, and the victories beyond the dreams of the gay rights pioneers—is the most important civil rights issue of the present day. Based on rigorous research and more than 150 interviews, The Gay Revolution tells this unfinished story not through dry facts but through dramatic accounts of passionate struggles, with all the sweep, depth, and intricacies only an award-winning activist, scholar, and novelist like Lillian Faderman can evoke.

The Gay Revolution begins in the 1950s, when law classified gays and lesbians as criminals, the psychiatric profession saw them as mentally ill, the churches saw them as sinners, and society victimized them with irrational hatred. Against this dark backdrop, a few brave people began to fight back, paving the way for the revolutionary changes of the 1960s and beyond. Faderman discusses the protests in the 1960s; the counter reaction of the 1970s and early eighties; the decimated but united community during the AIDS epidemic; and the current hurdles for the right to marriage equality.

In the words of the eyewitnesses who were there through the most critical events, The Gay Revolution paints a nuanced portrait of the LGBT civil rights movement. A defining account, this is the most complete and authoritative book of its kind.

Lonely Planet Releases Free ‘Guide to Pride’ Digital Book

Just in time for Pride Month, Lonely Planet has released their Lonely Planet's Guide to Pride: 20 Cities & Their Celebrations, a free digital book now available worldwide, exclusively on iBooks: http://itunes.com/prideguide

Since the first Gay Pride marches took to the streets 45 years ago, Pride has blossomed into a worldwide celebration of community, diversity, inclusiveness and individuality. Inspired by festivities hosted by cities large and small throughout the year, Lonely Planet's Guide to Pride covers 20 of the biggest, most-welcoming and jump-on-a-plane-worthy Pride events around the world, from Taipei to Toronto, San Francisco to São Paulo.

Books: More Happy Than Not

Adam Silvera has a lot in common with Aaron Soto, his protagonist in More Happy Than Not. Both grew up in a one-bedroom apartment in the Bronx, with a distant brother and an overworked, single mom. And both have to navigate the dangerous business of coming out as gay in a culture of machismo and violence. Aaron undergoes a memory erasure procedure at the Leteo Institute in response to the prejudices in his community, to try to be "normal." Not surprisingly, trying to bend himself to those expectations doesn’t solve anything. 

Books: Take This Man: Gay Romance Stories

When the Supreme Court decided on June 26th, 2013 that the Defense of Marriage Act was unconstitutional, gay rights activists and proponents of love everywhere celebrated. Now, just two years later, 37 states have followed the Supreme Court’s lead, making it legal for gay couples to marry. Though the battle for the right to gay marriage isn’t over yet. This past week the Supreme Court sat down once again to discuss the legality of gay marriage in the United States, and, as before, we will have to wait until June to find out just how the issue will be settled nationally.

Set to be released on the 2nd anniversary of the repeal of DOMA—and just in time for wedding season—veteran Cleis Press author and editor Neil Plakcy brings us Take This Man: Gay Romance Stories. Plakcy, who has previously edited eight other anthologies of LGBT romance, offers up sixteen new stories of commited love, where the passion is proven with a ring. Do you take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband?

Jamie Brickhouse's 'Dangerous When Wet' Now Available on Audiobook

Macmillan Audio has just released Jamie Brickhouse’s Dangerous When Wet, the astonishing new memoir about alcoholism, sex, and family that Mary Karr calls “blisteringly funny” and Wally Lamb raves is “poignant, hilarious, and sharply observed… move over, Augusten Burroughs. You’ve got company.” 

Read by the author, this story of growing up gay in Texas and losing oneself in New York is the perfect audiobook for fans of Mississippi Sissy, The Memoirs of a Beautiful Boy, and yes, Augusten Burroughs. 

Check out the prologue here to see if it's up your alley. 

Books: The Transgender Child

Available to readers now as a print book, ebook and audiobook, The Transgender Child by Stephanie A. Brill and Rachel Pepper covers gender variance from birth through college, offering advice on handling family conversations, advocacy in school, drug and medical options and, most importantly, how parents can raise a transgender child with love and compassion as gender issues are hotly debated in schools and in national media.

Books: The Sell by 'Million Dollar Listing New York's' Fredrik Eklund

You may be familiar with Fredrik Eklund from Bravo’s Million Dollar Listing New York. Now, he’s adding “published author” to his already impressive resume with his upcoming book, 'The Sell'. 

In 'The Sell', Fredrik discusses how the choice to be our most authentic selves is critical to success and how intangible factors like charm and even being “weird” can get you noticed and make you shine. At the age of 23, after a failure in his early career, Fredrik decided to leave his native Sweden and pursue his dream in the city that never sleeps, New York City. He came out to his family and friends before launching his new life in a new country; he knew he needed to be his true self “both personally and professionally.”

According to Fredrik, even if you don’t consider yourself a salesperson, you’ve been in sales your whole life because every day you are selling your most important asset: yourself. Whenever you influence, persuade or convince someone to give you something in exchange for what you’ve got—whether it’s a luxury home or your profile on Match.com—you are selling. Fredrik shares his tips and tricks for negotiating so that in any of life’s dealings, you’ll come out a winner.

Books: JD

In Mark Merlis' new novel "JD" Jonathan Ascher, an acclaimed 1960s radical writer and cultural hero, has been dead for thirty years. 

When a would-be biographer approaches Ascher’s widow Martha, she delves for the first time into her husband’s papers and all the secrets that come tumbling out of them. 

She finds journals that begin as a wisecracking chronicle of life at the fringes of the New York literary scene, then recount Ascher’s sexual adventures in the pre-Stonewall gay underground and the social upheavals that led to his famous book “JD.”

A Q&A With Marc Freden, Author of 'Not Too Cocksure'

Producer, entertainment journalist and on-camera personality Marc Freden has promised to reveal the ‘dark side of the bright lights’ with a explosive series of sexually charged scandalous novels revealing Hollywood’s unspoken truths. The first, Not Too Cocksure, introduces the recurring character of Mica Daly—an ambitious entertainment journalist who becomes the topic of his own story when his involvement with the meteoric rising star, Chad Martin, goes from the murmurs of gossip to the stuff of Hollywood lore.

Who is Mica Daly?
Mica Daly is an aggressive, ambitious entertainment reporter and a keen observer of the world around him. But unlike many reporters in today’s media world, he is not fishing for the lowest common denominator, trying to ruin lives or find the scandal. He still believes there can be entertainment in entertainment reportage. As you see in Not Too Cocksure his moral high ground gets him in trouble as he becomes a fall guy. But as you see as the books evolve, you can only push him so far and soon his experience become his education. 


How much of the book is based in fact? It is all based in fact. The truth is far more entertaining than the fiction. The fiction stems from placing these amalgam characters in certain circumstances which link the fact based plot line together. That is certainly the case in Not Too Cocksure.
 
Are you concerned that you will be biting the hand that feeds you? No! I am more concerned that the reader is sated. I have no problem pulling back the curtain on Hollywood and the world of celebrity and entertainment and telling what I know. My anecdotes have been the subjects of years of cocktail chatter, I am excited about sharing them with a broader audience.
 
More and more actors are coming out of the closet. Is the threat of outing still relevant? Coming out in Hollywood is still a ‘dollars and sense’ situation for many actors. Will the studios back you in the same way? Will there be roles available for you? Are you relegated to character roles versus leading roles? But, moreover, coming out is a personal decision and should not be thrust upon you. What Mica faces is a moral dilemma as much as a career crossroads. This is also a story about how low the media will sink to get the story and at what cost. As such this story is relevant on many levels. 

What can we expect from Mica as the books progress? I think Mica can’t help but become a product of his environment. The entertainment industry doesn’t change because you have a moralistic ideology. In order to succeed, he is going to have to find a way to exist in a system that is unfair, favors cronyism, rewards mediocrity and protects the scandalous. And he will. The question is: will his success reveal a darker, more ambitious, Mica? Let’s face it, in order to be a player, you have to play the game.

Books: Broken Child, Mended Man

Broken Child Mended Man, by Dr. Adam Starks, tells the harrowing tale of a neglected upbringing and transition into foster care; a microcosm of the 500,000 children currently locked in the same system. However, and against all odds, Dr. Starks triumphed through his pain to achieve trend-bucking success. In this raw and frank memoir, Dr. Starks lays his life story bare, and through a display of what can only be described as resilience in its most primitive form, offers hope to others who feel their past has to define their future.

Books: From Stressed to Centered - A Practical Guide to a Healthier and Happier You

It's not too late for that New Year's restart; a chance to re-launch your life, liberated from overwhelming stress.  Dana Gionta, Ph.D. and Dan Guerra, Psy.D. who are experts in clinical psychology and behavioral change, have written the definitive book on stress relief and self-care - From Stressed to Centered - A Practical Guide to a Healthier and Happier You.

From Stressed to Centered offers a comprehensive approach, thoughtfully crafted structure, and practical methods that yield long-term results. From Stressed to Centered is a top to bottom offering that includes innovative Stress Management and Self-Care assessments which are powerful evaluative tools culled from Drs. Gionta and Guerra's years as behavior change experts within both clinical and organizational environments. From there, the book offers easy-to-integrate life-changing strategies to release yourself from stress and find a centered core from where you can be your most present and do your best work. From Stressed to Centered teaches you how to manage your stress through simple, actionable, portable techniques in only a few moments - anywhere, any time. The book also provides you with proven strategies to help you create your own powerful self-care toolkit to recognize and avoid burnout and stay on a low-stress path.

Books: Gaybash

Set in Chicago's Lakeview neighborhood, Gaybash explores the boundaries of love and friendship and the unintended consequences of wanting to be somebody else. 

 Matt Tompkins, a reserved gay man, has always played by the rules and has created a comfortable but unfulfilling life for himself. When his bold best friend Greg reaps unexpected rewards for standing up for himself in a very public display, Matt's jealousy leads him to risk everything when he's confronted by two attackers. Determined to be more like Greg, a split-second reaction brings astonishing changes to Matt's life--for better and for worse.

"This Day in June" wins 2015 Stonewall Children's and Young Adult Literature Award

“This Day in June” written by Gayle E. Pitman, Ph.D., illustrated by Kristyna Litten and published by Magination Press, an imprint of the American Psychological Association, is the 2015 recipient of the Mike Morgan and Larry Romans Children’s and Young Adult Literature Award presented by the Stonewall Book Awards. The award was announced today by the American Library Association’s (ALA) Stonewall Book Awards Committee of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Round Table, during the ALA Midwinter Meeting, held Jan. 30 – Feb. 3 in Chicago.

The Stonewall Book Awards are given annually to English-language works of exceptional merit for children or teens relating to the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender experience. The award will be presented to the winning authors or editors at the American Library Association Annual Conference in San Francisco in June.

“‘This Day in June’ celebrates the pride and diversity of the LGBTQ community from a child’s point of view. This is the first picture book to win the Stonewall Book Awards – Mike Morgan and Larry Romans Children’s and Young Adult Literature Award. In fact, this is the first time in the 44-year history of the awards a picture book was selected. It reflects the ever-growing quality and quantity of LGBTQ picture books being published,” said Stonewall Book Awards Committee Chair Dr. Rebecca D. Hunt.

“This Day in June” depicts a child’s eye view of a Pride Parade, and conveys the excitement, energy and diversity of the many varieties of queer life.