Lethe Press Books

Sneak peak of the cover of TOUCH OF THE SEA, edited by Steve Berman

Greek myths held that Oceanus to be a massive river surrounding the land. A Titan, son of sky and earth, he was depicted as a handsome, muscular man whose torso ended in a scaled tail. As the Olympians emerged, Oceanus retreated, his domain restricted to strange and dangerous shores, the realm of sailors’ fortunes and worries.

So, too, are the eleven tales within the pages of The Touch of the Sea: fantastical, at times eerie, with sightings of mermen, water spirits, and sea beasts (even the fabled “living island,” the aspidochelone) as well as a smattering of pirates. What makes these stories memorable is that they reveal the masculinity of the sea, the taste of brine on another man’s lips.

Become mates with such award-winning authors as Joel Lane and Jeff Mann, seasoned storytellers ‘Nathan Burgoine, Chaz Brenchley, and Alex Jeffers—and a wide array of coxswains: Brandon Cracraft, Jonathan Harper, John Howard, Vincent Kovar, Matt Merendo, Damon Shaw—under the helm of editor Steve Berman.

Now out….THE HEART’S HISTORY by Lewis DeSimone….

Critical Praise:

This is Edward—architect, friend, lover, mystery.  Everyone has their own Edward—a kaleidoscope of images struggling to define a man who has never let anyone get too close.  But now, Edward is dying, and all of his loved ones are desperate to understand him, to connect fully with him, before it’s too late.  In this beautiful and haunting novel, Lewis DeSimone, author of the acclaimed Chemistry, explores the hidden depths of love, and the struggle to maintain a balance between connection and individuality.  Set against the backdrop of a sea change in gay culture—when proud defiance struggles against a drive for assimilation—The Heart’s History paints a compelling portrait of a man and a community on the cusp of a critical transition.

Lewis DeSimone’s beautiful novel captures the many facets of contemporary gay life, from sharp humor, long-lasting friendships, and the urban club scene to the insecurities of aging, the uncertainties of romance, and the agonies of a loved one’s loss.  It also illuminates a difficult and inescapable truth:  we mortals are all elusive mysteries, all in the end unknowable, but that mystery is the very fuel of love.

—Jeff Mann, author of Fog: A Novel of Desire and Reprisal and Purgatory: A Novel of the Civil War

With admirable sensitivity, Lewis DeSimone reaches deep into a close community of friends to explore the textured lives of gay men, their urgencies haunted by the traumas and anxieties of the past, illuminated by their current (sometimes troubled) affinities and relationships. At the center of this circle is the endearing couple, Robert and Edward, their touching story a catalyst that allows those near them (including the reader) to consider the power of commitment, the grace of forgiveness.  The Heart’s History is a stunning portrait of love.

—Rigoberto González, author of The Mariposa Club and Butterfly Boy

Lewis DeSimone’s The Heart’s History is a novel of trouble and wonder. It moves in unexpected directions and looks into the complicated, real-life struggles that lesser writers tend to simplify or avoid. It is adult in its scope, and generous in its understanding of how loss changes us as both groups and individuals. As soon as I finished, I wanted to start reading all over again.

—Paul Lisicky, author of Lawnboy and The Burning House

Lewis DeSimone is a great writer. His prose is thoughtful, deep, layered and real. His characters are living. It’s about love and sex and AIDS, about human connection and the ultimate unknowability of another person. It’s about the slow assimilation of a larger gay culture that used to be more angry and badass. It’s a really good book written by a very skilled author.

—Michelle Tea, author of Valencia and Rose of No Man’s Land

In The Heart’s History Lewis DeSimone gives us a profoundly moving story about reaching out and pulling back, about intimacy and mystery, written in shapely and nuanced prose. Even better, it also reminds us of important truths about life, gay and otherwise:  that time changes everything, that love changes shape, and that friendship can change a world, if we let it. That makes it a book to read closely, with tenderness … and repeatedly.

—Peter Dubé, author of Hovering World and Subtle Bodies