Tom Crewe & Paul Mendez: The New Life

In one of the most eagerly anticipated debuts of 2023 LRB editor Tom Crewe presents a fictionalised account of the lives and loves of John Addington Symonds and Henry Havelock Ellis, and their collaboration on a revolutionary work that set out to transform our understanding of sexual ethics. Colm Tóibín has written of The New Life (Chatto and Windus) ‘[It] is filled with nuance and tenderness, steeped in the atmosphere of late nineteenth century London, a world on the brink of social and sexual change. Tom Crewe‘s brilliant novel dramatizes the relationship between the visionary and the brave, charting the lives of men and women who inspired not only political progress but an entire new way of living and loving.’

Tom Crewe was in conversation with Paul Mendez, author of another ground-breaking debut Rainbow Milk.