Books

[Paris]: [Maurice Sachs and Jacques Bonjean], 1928. First edition. [6], 7-80, [6] pp. Quarto. Folded wrappers, title and monogram printed on front cover. Printed on Montval laid paper, handmade by Gaspard Maillol, by Ducros et Colas, printers, Paris. Slightest occasional spotting to leaves, still a fine copy, housed in a chemise and slipcase. One of 31 numbered copies printed, of which ten were reserved for the author. The true and extremely rare first edition of one of Cocteau's most extraordinary and emblematic works. Published anonymously, it is the first time Cocteau directly wrote on the subject of homosexuality- as Claude Arnaud notes in his definitive biography, "this indirect praising of homosexual love, experienced as 'one of the most mysterious workings of the divine masterpiece,' was the kind of work that might once have helped the adolescent Cocteau to rise above opprobrium and secure his self-esteem." Cocteau never allowed his name to be directly attributed to the…

Le Livre Blanc, or The White Book, is a semi-autobiographical novel by Jean Cocteau. It contains a series of loosely related vignettes detailing the author's homosexual experiences and reflections.