Drawing on newspaper accounts private archives, advertisements, and other sources, Improper Bostonians introduces us to men and women who flouted conventional gender rules, were unapologetic about their lifestyles, and tried to make sense of their sexuality - sometimes at great cost.

As Improper Bostonians delves into its subject through an extraordinary variety of perspectives and periods, subjects and sources, it also explores the impact of historic events and trends - including Prohibition, censorship, World War II, the Kinsey reports on human sexuality, and urban development in the 1960s. Featuring two hundred images, this is a fascinating introduction to the rich gay heritage of the Athens of America.