Gay New York: Gender, Urban Culture, and the Making of the Gay Male World, 1890-1940 [Author Inscribed]

New York: Basic Books, 1994. First Edition, First Printing. xxv, 478 pages: illustrations; 24 cm Fine to fine(-) with some very minor wear to edges, in a fine jacket now in archival mylar. Hardcover. ISBN: 9781541699212, 1541699211

Singed and inscribed by the author in year of publication. (Inscriptee's name removed from photo for privacy.)"Gay New York brilliantly shatters the myth that before the 1960s gay life existed only in the closet, where gay men were isolated, invisible, and self-hating. Drawing on a rich trove of diaries, legal records, and other unpublished documents, George Chauncey constructs a fascinating portrait of a vibrant, cohesive gay world that is not supposed to have existed. Called "monumental" (Washington Post), "unassailable" (Boston Globe), "brilliant" (Nation), and "a first-rate book of history" (New York Times), Gay New York forever changed how we think about the history of gay life in New York City, and beyond." —Publisher. / Contents: Introduction. Male (homo)sexual practices and identities in the early twentieth century. The making of the gay male world. The politics of gay culture. Epilogue: The strange career of the closet.