An evocative memoir of childhood summers spent in Provincetown on Cape Cod.

How did a sleepy New England fishing village become a gay mecca? In this dynamic history, the author explains why Provincetown, Massachusetts, --alternately known as "Land's End," "Cape-tip," "Cape-end," and, to some, "Queersville, U.S.A."--has meant many things to many people. 36 photos.

A stunning portrait of community, identity, and sexuality by the critically acclaimed author of The Narrow Door When Paul Lisicky arrived in Provincetown in the early 1990s, he was leaving behind a history of family trauma to live in a place outside of time, known for its values of inclusion, acceptance, and art. In this idyllic haven, Lisicky searches for love and connection and comes into his own as he finds a sense of belonging. At the same time, the center of this community is consumed by the AIDS crisis, and the very structure of town life is being rewired out of necessity: What might this utopia look like during a time of dystopia? Later dramatizes a spectacular yet ravaged place and a unique era when more fully becoming one’s self collided with the realization that ongoingness couldn’t be taken for granted, and staying alive from moment to moment exacted absolute attention. Following the success of his acclaimed memoir, The Narrow Door, Lisicky fearlessly explores the body, queerness, love, illness, community, and belonging in this masterful, ingenious new book.

A safe haven for the queer community and a getaway for artists, the beach town of Provincetown, Massachusetts is a place defined by openness and tolerance. Throughout the late 1970s and early '80s, Joel Meyerowitz spent his summers there, roaming the seaside with an 8-by-10 camera, making exquisite, sharply observed portraits of Provincetown's progressive community. Provincetown collects one hundred portraits, most never before published, bringing viewers into an idyllic world of self-styled individualism.

"Cunningham's short book is a haunting, beautiful piece of work. . . . A magnificent work of art." -The Washington Post "Easily read on a plane-and-ferry journey from here to the sandy, tide-washed tip of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, Land's End is that most perfect of companions: slender, eloquent, enriching, and fun. . . . A casually lovely ode to Provincetown." -The Minneapolis Star Tribune "Cunningham rambles through Provincetown, gracefully exploring the unusual geography, contrasting seasons, long history, and rich stew of gay and straight, Yankee and Portuguese, old-timer and 'washashore' that flavors Cape Cod's outermost town. . . . Chock-full of luminous descriptions . . . . He's hip to its studied theatricality, ever-encroaching gentrification and physical fragility, and he can joke about its foibles and mourn its losses with equal aplomb." -Chicago Tribune "A homage to the 'city of sand'. . . Filled with finely crafted sentences and poetic images that capture with equal clarity the mundanities of the A&P and Provincetown's magical shadows and light . . . Highly evocative and honest. It takes you there." -The Boston Globe

A delightful collection of classic recipes, folk history, and original drawings by Cape Cod's most-admired chef. With a new Introduction by Anthony Bourdain "It's a true classic, one of the most influential of my life." --Anthony Bourdain, from the new introduction "Provincetown ... is the seafood capital of the universe, the fishiest town in the world. Cities like Gloucester, Boston, New Bedford, and San Diego may have bigger fleets, but they just feed the canneries. Provincetown supplies fresh fish for the tables of gourmets everywhere." --Howard Mitcham Provincetown's best-known and most-admired chef combines delectable recipes and delightful folklore to serve up a classic in seafood cookbooks. Read about the famous (and infamous!) Provincetown fishing fleet, the adventures of the fish and shellfish that roam Cape Cod waters, and the people of Provincetown--like John J. Glaspie, Lord Protector of the Quahaugs. Then treat yourself to Cape Cod Gumbo, Provincetown Paella, Portuguese Clam Chowder, Lobster Fra Diavolo, Zarzuela, and dozens of other Portuguese, Creole, and Cape Cod favorites. A list of fresh and frozen seafood substitutes for use anywhere in the country is a unique feature of this lively book. You'll learn the right way to eat broiled crab and the safe way to open oysters. You'll even learn how to cook a sea serpent!

"Academic studies are often pedantic and dense. This is not the case with this study...Krahulik combines traditional research methods and oral histories to record and interpret this journey in a respectful, scholarly manner." --Choice, Highly Recommended"A fascinating study of a fascinating town; a charming piece of social history that is as readable as it is scholarly." --TWNInsider"At the end of curling Cape Cod, Provincetown has gone through several transformations since the Pilgrims landed there--from Yankee whaling town to Portuguese fishing village to bohemian artist enclave to, today, one of the world's most popular gay resorts. Surprisingly, each of those segments of society contributed to the 'P-town' of today." --Chicago Sun-TimesKaren Krahuliks Provincetown is the definitive book on the history of that mysterious and magical place. Its a singular accomplishment. Im grateful to her for writing it, as I suspect many others will be for years and years to come. --Michael Cunningham, author of The Hours"From Pilgrim's Landing to gay Disneyland, Provincetown has remade itself again and again. Karen Krahulik's remarkable book deftly charts these transformations. She manages to weave New England Yankees, Portuguese fisherman, bohemian artists, and lesbian entrepreneurs into a single history that is both absorbing and revelatory. In her hands, class, race, gender, and sexuality stop being categories or slogans and instead are the stuff of a community's story. This is social history at its most original and very best." --John D'Emilio, author of Sexual Politics, Sexual CommunitiesKrahulik tells a rich and compelling story of a unique community shaped by immigration, global economicforces, ethnic tensions, commercialism, and the struggles of indiv