Justin Spring

Drawing on the voluminous material left after Steward’s death—thanks to his habit of compulsively recording many aspects of his life, especially his sexual encounters—Spring has delivered the fullest account of this enthralling writer, professor, tattoo artists, and pornographer we are ever likely to have, and written one of the best books of the year. Using Steward’s life, Justin Spring has given us a vivid, in-depth look at gay life before Stonewall, when the “naiveté” of the show more mainstream about homosexuality allowed gays an odd kind of freedom to pursue “straight” men with impunity, while remaining outsiders in a world where they were not allowed to exist. Brilliantly navigating through the many lives and pseudonyms of Steward, Secret Historian is a remarkable work that shows Justin Spring to be as much of a master seducer as Steward himself. Writing in a compulsively readable style which perfectly complements its subject’s incredible story, he turns what could have easily become a sordid tale of compulsive sex, publishing disappointments, and near misses into a balanced, clear-eyed portrait of a fascinating, complex human being who was, “if nothing else, a man who dared to live his beliefs. show less

A personal game changer of a book for me as it offers a detailed look into what a long, complicated, and varied thing life as a weirdo can be.

As Spring notes in the introduction it is in many ways "a story of obsession, isolation, and failure," so don't come looking for chicken soup for the soul. In fact, if you're not a queer, tattooed, and/or bdsm freak don't even bother reading it because you'll find little of interest, and even less that seems like "history" in the traditional show more sense.

Final summation, read it. Then, track down as many Phil Andros novels as you can find. show less

Biographer Justin Spring should be applauded for his exhaustive research, penetrating insight, and empathy in bringing the life of Sam Steward to a contemporary audience of readers. Spring knows the importance of interesting lives lived on the edge. An individual need not be famous to have a life worth writing about, and Steward's life was a fascinating collage of sex and artistic creativity - a most potent blend.

Spring gives the various components of Steward's life equal treatment, and the show more reader while aware that sexual encounters were a very large and important part of Steward's life, never loses track of the fact that the man was a professor, a writer, and an artist. In fact, even his sexual life took on a creative bent as he found new ways to meet men and interesting ways to document them.

In writing of Steward's life, Spring takes his readers through a complete history of gay life in America from the 1920s through the 1980s. As we follow Steward's sexual conquests and his various careers, we are also following gay lifestyles from the closeted and careful times to the breakaway and coming-out decade of the 1970s. In many ways using Steward's fascinating life as a way to trace gay history in America is a brilliant path for Spring to have taken. He uses Steward as the vehicle to present more gay and American history than we might expect from a biography of one man.

Steward may not have been a household name, but he was very friendly with many famous people including Alfred Kinsey. Gertrude Stein, Alice B. Toklas, George Platt Lynes, and Thornton Wilder among others. For those who avoid biographies unless there are connections to fame, Secret Historian will not disappoint. And, in many cases, it should be noted that Steward's life was far more interesting that those of his more famous friends.

One of the unique parts of the biography is the emphasis on Steward's time as a tattoo artist. While biographies of gay men, artists, and writers are plentiful, when was the last time anyone read a biography of a tattoo artist? Introducing us to the world of tattooing is an extra gift from Spring who has the admirable talent of being able to discover those with unique lifestyles and pick out the parts that are most interesting, bringing them alive to an audience who might not otherwise know or understand them.

Congratulations must also go to the executor of Sam Steward's estate who may not have known what to do with all of Steward's papers and files, but kept them anyway. If he had not preserved them, Spring would not have had what he needed to research and write this very unusual and commendable biography. We can only hope that more individuals leading quiet but "other worldly" lives leave behind the depth of documentation that Steward left. Stories such as this need to be told, and Steward probably knew that in some way during his lifetime. If he were alive, he would have every right to be proud of Spring's book about his life behind the closed door as well as in front of it. show less

Oh, this book is cute. This book is SO cute. And handbook is no misnomer -- this book is just the right size to fit nicely in one's hand.

Even better, the advice is superb. I dejunked my kitchen in an afternoon after reading the chapter about equipment.

I made the Orange Marmalade Bread Pudding. It was too eggy and not bready enough for me. I wanted something more like baked french toast, and I ended up with a sweet omelet with crunchy little sandwich squares on top.