“Some writers are so enthralled by ideas (one thinks of Doris Lessing) that their characters become debaters, and their fables approach allegory.”

American novelist, memoirist, playwright, biographer and essayist

Edmund White was an American novelist, memoirist, playwright, biographer, and essayist. He was known as a pioneering figure in LGBTQ, especially gay, literature after the Stonewall riots. He wrote with unusual candor about gay identity, relationships, and sex, at a time when coming out could still be dangerous. His work is marked by intimacy and literary elegance. Among his best-known books are the semi-autobiographical trilogy A Boy's Own Story, The Beautiful Room Is Empty, and The Farewell Symphony, and he also co-authored The Joy of Gay Sex, which helped encourage a sex-positive conversation.