Le Livre Blanc, a ‘white paper’ on homosexual love, was first published anonymously in France by Cocteau’s contemporary Maurice Sachs and was at once decried by the critics as obscene.

The semi-autobiographical narrative describes a youth’s love affairs with a succession of boys and men during the early years of this century. The young man’s self-deceptive attempts to find fulfilment, first through women and then by way of the church, are movingly conveyed; the book ends with a strong plea for male homosexuality to be accepted without censure.

Le Livre Blanc is fully illustrated and includes many woodcuts by the author.

‘An appealingly unhealthy blend of pure style and impure thoughts.’ – Edmund White, Independent on Sunday

‘Historically, politically and above all, aesthetically, this book is a masterpiece.’ – Pink Paper

‘A wonderful book.’ – Gay Times

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JEAN COCTEAU was born in 1889 in Maisons-Laffitte, Yvelines, a village near Paris. He is regarded as one of France’s greatest men of letters. A multi-faceted talent, he achieved distinction as a poet, playwright and critic, as well as an artist, illustrator, composer, actor and film-maker. Among his best known novels are Les Enfants Terribles, Thomas the Impostor and The Miscreant. He died in 1963.