Book Club

This final memoir by Edmund White, one of the most influential voices in queer literature, traces more than sixty years of gay life through the lens of desire. From furtive encounters in mid-century America to the sexual liberation of the post-Stonewall years and the shadow of the AIDS crisis, White’s recollections map an entire cultural history alongside his own biography.
Structured less as a linear narrative than as a constellation of lovers, episodes and reflections, the book blends erotic confession with literary meditation. White writes about transactional sex, longings, power dynamics and emotional attachments with his signature mix of irony, tenderness and intellectual curiosity.
What emerges is not only a chronicle of excess and experimentation, but also a sustained inquiry into the meaning of love—whether fleeting, one-sided or transformative. At once provocative and reflective, “The Loves of My Life” becomes a celebration of queer existence across generations, shaped by memory, loss, humour and an enduring devotion to beauty and language.

Marco Astolfi is a literary translator, writer and fairy from Italy. He lives in Berlin, is a co-organizer of the Village Heart Circle for GBTQ men and runs the Book Club evening every two months. He is a regular at Creative Writing and can occasionally be found modeling for Life Drawing classes. He attended the One Year Training in 2018 and led the Cock O’Clock workshops at Easter Stretch Festival 2019 and Private Talk at Stretch Imagina 2020.

Über den Village Book Club
Bücherliebhaber und Leseratten treffen sich jeden Monat, um Literatur und Sachbücher (Romane, Biografien und Essays) zu besprechen, die sich mit LGBTQIA+-Themen und -Persönlichkeiten befassen oder damit in Zusammenhang stehen.
In Voraussicht auf aufschlussreiche Diskussionen wählen wir das nächste Buch zwei Monate im Voraus aus.
Die Diskussionen am Abend finden auf Englisch statt, aber die Teilnehmenden können die Bücher in ihrer Lieblingssprache lesen.

** Diese Veranstaltung ist Teil unseres Programms ‘Gemeinsam statt einsam‘, unterstützt von der LADS.
Erfahre mehr über das Programm hier.