A Great Gay Book - by Ryan Fitzgibbon (Hardcover)

About the Book

"A Great Gay Book: Stories of Growth, Belonging & Other Queer Possibilities is a gorgeously designed collection of art, essays, short fiction, poetry, interviews, profiles, and photography from the archives of the beloved queer magazine Hello Mr., as well as new material from many of today's biggest LGBTQ+ creatives.

Book Synopsis

A Great Gay Book: Stories of Growth, Belonging & Other Queer Possibilities is a gorgeously designed collection of art, essays, short fiction, poetry, interviews, profiles, and photography from the archives of the beloved queer magazine Hello Mr., as well as new material from many of today's biggest LGBTQ+ creatives.

Hello Mr. was founded by Ryan Fitzgibbon in 2012. Over its ten-issue lifespan, the groundbreaking indie magazine became the first home for some of the most prestigious queer voices of a generation. With more than a decade's devotion, and the publishing prowess of Abrams, Fitzgibbon has created an astonishing reminder of our collective power in A Great Gay Book.

Notable artists and writers featured include Jeremy Atherton Lin, Lady Bunny, Alexander Chee, Garth Greenwell, Saeed Jones, Wesley Morris, Chani Nicholas, Tommy Pico, Brontez Purnell, LJ Roberts, Mathew Rodriguez, Antwaun Sargent, Fran Tirado, Ocean Vuong, Bryan Washington, John Waters, Kehinde Wiley, J Wortham, Hanya Yanagihara, and many more.

Philadelphia Gay News praises this "exciting anthology" and adds: "The entries are compelling enough to enjoy back-to-back-to-back, but they are also worth savoring . . . Fitzgibbon wisely juxtaposes text and images, so the flow of the book never feels too dense. There are several memorable essays and interviews that are original to this volume . . . [and] brief entries featuring key queer voices in contemporary gay literature. It is valuable that these entries are now available to reach a wider audience."

Review Quotes

"[An] exciting anthology . . . The book certainly lives up to its title . . . The entries are compelling enough to enjoy back-to-back-to-back, but they are also worth savoring. . . Fitzgibbon wisely juxtaposes text and images, so the flow of the book never feels too dense. There are several memorable essays and interviews that are original to this volume . . .also [including] some superb fiction . . . [and] brief entries featuring key queer voices in contemporary gay literature. It is valuable that these entries are now available to reach a wider audience. A Great Gay Book leaves readers wanting more."--PHILADELPHIA GAY NEWS

"[A] beautiful new tome...[that] will instantly elevate any coffee table you set it on."--QUEERTY

"[A] gorgeous anthology."--PRIDESOURCE

"A stunning decorative addition to any coffee table but foremost a must-read collection of writing and art, A Great Gay Book pulls together past work alongside new contributions that altogether accomplish exactly what Fitzgibbon... set out to do: to encourage reflection 'as a mirror to conceive new possibilities.'"--PRIDESOURCE, Summer Books That'll Have You Feeling a Sense of Pride

"An insightful collection . . . The stylistically diverse contributions are linked by a preoccupation with the question of whether increased mainstream acceptance of LGBTQ+ people must come at the expense of what makes the community unique. It's an illuminating snapshot of the changing face of queerness."--PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

"Featured inside is a rainbow-hued goldmine of essays, photo journals, poems, author interviews, profiles, art, and fiction from some of the most creative queer voices of the last decade...Plenty of provocative, sexy, fisty, foot fetish-y articles keep healthy libidos turning the pages...stunning representations of our unique culture and the queer community members who keep it awash in color and spice."--BAY AREA REPORTER

About the Author

Ryan Fitzgibbon is an artist and publisher. After beginning as a communication designer at IDEO in San Francisco, California, he founded Hello Mr. in 2012. Fitzgibbon self-published the magazine from Brooklyn, New York, before moving to Tulsa, Oklahoma in January of 2020. Shortly after arriving, he was diagnosed with HIV at the height of the pandemic. These events inspired his creation of In Our Blood, a platform to detect, exercise, and replenish your inner activist. In addition to organizing to protect LGBTQ+ rights and expanding HIV/AIDS care and prevention in Oklahoma, his work includes supporting the Black Wall Street Times through the production of multiple print publications, and the opening of their newsroom and storefront in Greenwood. Fitzgibbon is a 2021-2023 awardee of the Tulsa Artist Fellowship.