Baby Precious Always Shines: Selected Love Notes between Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas

A collection of the love notes Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas wrote to each other.

About the Author :
Kay Turner holds a Ph.D. in Folklore and Anthropology from the University of Texas. Her work spans such subjects as the pop star Madonna, folk images of the Virgin Mary, folk art from recycled materials, lesbian rock bands, lesbian love letters, women's art, and feminism. In addition to writing, Turner works as a curator, graphic designer, and performer/songwriter in an all-woman band.

Review :
"Edited skillfully . . . These letters illuminate the inseparability of female creativity and profound relationships among women. These scraps and scrawls of love . . . are intrinsically helpful biographically." --Catharine R. Stimpson, "The Women's Review of Books" "These 'precious' moments will delight the Steinophiles." --"Minneapolis Star Tribune" "Turner has unearthed a treasury of ephemera . . . Erotic without being explicit, affectionate but not schmaltzy, these notes are a testament to a physical, enduring love. What better way to start the new century than with a record of one of the great lesbian couples of the previous one." --Sarah Chinn, "The Advocate " "The collection makes a convincing case for Toklas's assertion that 'notes are a very beautiful form of literature' --personal, provocative, and tender." --"Kirkus Reviews" "Fans and scholars will greet [this collection] with the enthusiasm of an anthropologist discovering the ledger books of a lost tribe . . . These behind-the-scenes materials reveal a relationship much more complex than an imitation heterosexual marriage." --"Library Journal" "At last, what I always longed for, an intimate and revealing portrait of Gertrude Stein and Alice Toklas's relationship, painted by the couple themselves. That should put an end to the question: but what can two women do together? Along with Kay Turner's informative and provocative introduction, these letters will fascinate all Stein scholars and aficionados." --Esther Newton, author of "Cherry Grove, Fire Island and Mother Camp" "Spontaneous, playful, and decidedly physical, the love notes between Gertrude and Alice offer delight after delight. They afford us a privileged, close look at the mutual desire and devotion of the two most famous lesbians of the twentieth century. Kay Turner's insightful introduction illuminates the genius of their reinvention of marriage and makes clear how deeply rooted Stein's body of writin