In Exile: The History and Lore Surrounding New Orleans Gay Culture and Its Oldest Gay Bar is the first comprehensive treatment of the history of gay New Orleans drawn primarily on the recollections of dozens of gay men and women and providing a fascinating narrative of how gay New Orleans evolved throughout the twentieth century.

Showing the incredible and previously unrecognized contributions gay people have made to New Orleans culture, In Exile illuminates the darkness where gay people lived secret double-lives for decades and chronicles the social forces that enabled gay New Orleanians to live openly and honestly.

Learn how homophobia led to the founding of the nation's oldest gay bar, the origins of gay Carnival culture, and how Southern Decadence, one of the largest gay festivals in the world, began as an impromptu house party by a handful of bored college students.

Written with graceful insight and thoughtful perception, In Exile is not only a captivating history book, it is a beautiful meditation on the intersection of place and identity.