THE LEATHER RESEARCH REFERENCE SHELF ¶ Leather Books in Alternative Formats

This site lists books on leather culture or sadomasochism that are available in audio format, large print, electronic text, and braille. The different types of alternative formats are described on a separate page at this domain.

Leather is a gay male subculture centered upon the wearing of leather clothing. Some leathermen practice sadomasochism. The word leather is sometimes also used to refer to lesbian or heterosexual sadomasochism.

Leather Books in Alternative Formats is part of The Leather Research Reference Shelf.

This site is part of The Leather Research Reference Shelf.

This directory is maintained by Dusk Peterson. Fiction by Dusk Peterson is available, including leather fiction. More resources for blind and partially sighted readers are available at this domain. Accessibility information for this domain is available.

About This Site

This site links to leather books, which publish information on sexuality or have erotic content. Parental supervision is recommended for minors visiting this site.

[ Skip this page's table of contents ]

Sections below:

* Introduction
* Fiction
* Both Fiction and Nonfiction
* Nonfiction: Major References to Leather
* Nonfiction: Shorter References to Leather
* Early Authors and Their Biographers
* Books on Related Topics
* Related Links: Text
* Related Links: Audio
* Contact This Site

Introduction

Online or commercial books listed below can be read or bought by anyone. In order to borrow books from a library for the blind, you must be a qualifying member. Some memberships are free; others require payment.

I have linked below to catalog entries wherever possible; otherwise I have linked to the home page of the organization that provides access to the book.

The one category of books I have not linked to are psychology books, which are notorious for going out of date quickly. The only exception is that I have linked to Havelock Ellis because of his historical importance (he coined the terms sadism and masochism).

Fiction

Laura Antoniou, writing as Sara Adamson

The Marketplace (1993). In electronic braille and DAISY format at Bookshare.org (membership required).

The Slave (1994). In electronic braille and DAISY format at Bookshare.org (membership required).

The Trainer (1995). In electronic braille and DAISY format at Bookshare.org (membership required).

Carol Queen

The Leather Daddy and the Femme (1998, 2003). In electronic braille and DAISY format at Bookshare.org (membership required).

Pauline Reage

The Story of O (1965). In electronic braille and DAISY format at Bookshare.org (membership required). Also available in audio format at the Canadian National Institute for the Blind and RFB&D (membership required for both).

Anne Rice (also known as Anne Rampling and A. N. Roquelaure)

The Claiming of Sleeping Beauty, Edition 1 (1983). In electronic braille and DAISY format at Bookshare.org (membership required). The Claiming of Sleeping Beauty, Edition 2. In audio cassette format at Amazon.com, abridged.

Exit to Eden, Edition 1 (1985). In electronic braille and DAISY format Bookshare.org (membership required). Exit to Eden, Edition 2. In audio cassette format at Amazon.com.

Beauty's Punishment, Edition 1 (1984). In electronic braille and DAISY format at Bookshare.org (membership required). Beauty's Punishment, Editions 2 and 3. In two audio formats at Amazon.com. The cassette is abridged. The downloadable format is compatible with BookCourier.

Beauty's Release, Editions 1 and 2 (1985). In two audio formats at Amazon.com, both abridged. Beauty's Release, Edition 3. In audio format at Audible.com, abridged. Compatible with BookCourier.

Both Fiction and Nonfiction

Jack Fritscher

Assorted Works (1970s onward). This long-time leather author has placed several of his short story collections online, as well as all of his articles from Drummer magazine. The fiction is in PDF format and is not formatted for accessibility. The articles are in HTML format.

John Preston

Books by John Preston in Alternative Formats. (1980s onward). Books by the author of the gay leather classic Mr. Benson.

Nonfiction: Major References to Leather

Robert V. Bienvenu, II

The Development of Sadomasochism as a Cultural Style in the Twentieth-Century United States (1998). An online dissertation in PDF format. The PDF file is not formatted for accessibility.

Gloria G. Brame

Come Hither: A Commonsense Guide to Kinky Sex (2002). In e-text format at Fictionwise.com. Read-aloud disabled.

Different Loving: The World of Sexual Dominance and Submission (1993). In audio format at RFB&D (membership required).

Different Loving: The World of Sexual Dominance and Submission – Interviews (1993). Online selections from the book.

Nonfiction: Shorter References to Leather

Pat Califia

Forbidden Passages: Writings Banned in Canada (1995). Edited with Janine Fuller. Includes both fiction and nonfiction. In audio format at the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (membership required).

Sapphistry: The Book of Lesbian Sexuality (1988). Includes passages related to leathersex. In audio format at the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (membership required). Also available in audio format at the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (membership required).

Lynn S. Chancer

Sadomasochism in Everyday Life (1992). Discusses nonsexual sadomasochism. In audio format at RFB&D (membership required).

John E. Douglas

Anyone You Want to Be: A True Story of Sex and Death on the Internet (2003). About a serial killer who sought victims from the BDSM community. Forthcoming in audio format at the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (membership required).

Peter Fisher

The Gay Mystique: The Myth and Reality of Male Homosexuality (1972). Includes a chapter on S&M. In audio format at the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (membership required). Also available in audio format at RFB&D (membership required).

Karla Jay and Allen Young

Lavender Culture (1979). Includes a section on sadomasochism. In audio format at the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (membership required).

David R. Reuben

Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex . . . But Were Afraid to Ask (1969). A sixties sex manual. Homosexual sadists and masochists are described as "among the cruelest people who walk this earth." Heterosexual sadists and masochists are described as "harmless folks." In electronic braille and DAISY format at Bookshare.org (membership required). Also available in audio format at RFB&D (membership required).

Randy Shilts

And the Band Played On: Politics, People, and the AIDS Epidemic, Edition 1 (1987). Includes sections on the impact of AIDS on San Francisco, with negative portrayals of leather establishments. In electronic braille and DAISY format at Bookshare.org (membership required). And the Band Played On: Politics, People, and the AIDS Epidemic, Edition 2. In audio format at Amazon.com, abridged. Also available in audio format at the National Library Service for the Blind and RFB&D (membership required for both).

Dr. Charles Silverstein and Felice Picano

The Joy of Gay Sex (2003). This is the third edition of a book originally published in 1977. In e-text format at Fictionwise.com. Read-aloud enabled in Adobe format. Includes entries related to leathersex.

Early Authors and Their Biographers

Gilles Deleuze

Masochism (1971). A book about Leopold Sacher-Masoch. In audio format at RFB&D (membership required). Includes the full text of Sacher-Masoch's novel, Venus in Furs.

Havelock Ellis

Studies in the Psychology of Sex, Volume 3 (1927). Online at Project Gutenberg.

Francine du Plessix Gray

At Home with the Marquis de Sade (1998). In audio format at the Ontario Audio Library Service; available through interlibrary loan at the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (membership required).

Maurice Lever

Sade: A Biography (1991). In audio format at the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (membership required).

Leopold Ritter von Sacher-Masoch

Venus in Furs (1870). Online as e-text at the Gutenberg Project.

Donald Serrell Thomas

The Marquis de Sade (1976). In audio format at the RFB&D (membership required).

Books on Related Topics

Elizabeth Lapovsky Kennedy and Madeline D. Davis

Boots of Leather, Slippers of Gold: The History of a Lesbian Community (1993). Lesbian life in in Buffalo, New York. Includes a chapter on the "tough bar lesbians" of the 1950s, the predecessors to modern dykes. In electronic braille and DAISY format at Bookshare.org (membership required). Also available in audio format at RFB&D (membership required).

Extreme Spirituality: Radical Journeys for the Outward Bound (2001). Covers such topics as firewalking, piercing, and humility. In electronic braille and DAISY format at Bookshare.org (membership required).

Contact Information

For research questions concerning leather books, you should contact the Leather Archives & Museum. Comments, corrections, and questions about this site may be sent to Dusk Peterson.

[ HOME ] [ The Leather Research Reference Shelf ] [ Leather Fiction, History, and Magazines ]

This text, or a variation on it, was originally published at duskpeterson.com as part of The Leather Research Reference Shelf. Copyright © 2005 Dusk Peterson. Some rights reserved. The text is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Noncommercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0). You may freely print, post, e-mail, share, or otherwise distribute the text for noncommercial purposes, provided that you include this paragraph. The author's policies on derivative works and fan works are available online (duskpeterson.com/copyright.htm).