2025/148 | EDMUND WHITE - "THE LOVES OF MY LIFE: A SEX MEMOIR"

SYNOPSIS

From the legendary author Edmund White, a stunning, revelatory memoir of a lifetime of gay love and sex.

In this peerless memoir, the 85-year-old “paterfamilias of queer literature” (New York Times) recounts the sixty-plus years of sexual escapades that have inspired his many masterpieces. He explores the sex he had with other closeted boys in 50s Midwest, with women as a young man trying to be straight, the sex he's paid for and been paid for, sex during the Stonewall and HIV eras, and in the age of the apps. Through stories of transactional sex, mutual admiration, open relationships, domination, submission, love, and loss, he paints an indelible portrait of queer history in America and abroad in a way only someone who has lived through it can.

Written with White's signature honesty, irreverence, and wit, The Loves of My Life is the culmination of this legend's life and work, a delightful and moving tour of over seventy years of being unabashedly gay and in love with love in all its forms.

READING EXPERIENCE

Wow. What a life! Despite the wild stories, I found the book messy. Everything felt jumbled together, and I struggled to grasp what the author was really trying to convey. Beyond the details of how the author met his lovers, their sexual encounters, and the ups and downs of their relationships, there wasn’t much depth. It all felt rather shallow.

I was hoping for more—something that explored the emotional layers of intimacy. I wanted to understand what the author was thinking or feeling before, during, and after those moments, not just the physical side of it.

Another issue was the use of abbreviations. Many weren’t explained, and I found it frustrating that the full terms weren’t spelled out at least once. It made it harder to stay engaged or understand the context fully.

Overall, I was disappointed. I expected something more thoughtful and emotionally resonant.

RATINGS

Hero rating: -

Heroine rating: -

Sex scenes rating: 2

Sex scenes frequency: 5

Storyline concept rating: 2

Storytelling skills rating: 2

Story ending rating: 2

Book editing rating (5 = no edits spotted): 3

Overall rating: 1★

Would I recommend this book: No

Would I re-read this book: No

Would I read future books by this author: Maybe