In March 2024 Transworld will publish the long-awaited tenth novel in Armistead Maupin’s beloved and enduring Tales of the City series. To mark the occasion, the publisher is offering copies of the first novel in the best-selling San Francisco saga to reading groups.
The first book is an uproariously moving novel and an indelible portrait of cultural change from the seventies. Named as one of the BBC’s 100 Most Inspiring Novels, a PBS Great American Read Top 100 Pick and Britain’s favourite gay/lesbian novel from The Big Gay Read.
Among the cast are the lovelorn residents of 28 Barbary Lane: the bewildered but aspiring Mary Ann Singleton, the libidinous Brian Hawkins; Mona Ramsey, still in a sixties trance, Michael ‘Mouse’ Tolliver, forever in bright-eyed pursuit of Mr. Right; and their marijuana-growing landlady, the indefatigable Mrs. Madrigal.
Hurdling barriers both social and sexual, Maupin leads them through heartbreak and triumph, through nail-biting terrors and gleeful coincidences. The result is a glittering and addictive comedy of manners that continues to beguile new generations of readers.
How to apply to take part
Fill in this survey by 12pm on 28 February.
