Compiled together for the first time, here are three plays by Argentine novelist and playwright Manuel Puig, who died in 1990. The centerpiece of the volume is Puig's Kiss of the Spider Woman, made into an acclaimed film starring William Hurt. Also included are the compelling works Under a Mantle of Stars and Mystery of the Rose Bouquet.

Kiss of the Spider Woman is a graceful, intensely compelling novel about love and victimization. In an Argentine prison, two men share a cell: Molina, a gay window dresser who is self-centered, self-denigrating, yet charming as well; and Valentin, an articulate, fiercely dogmatic revolutionary haunted by memories of a woman he left for the cause. Both are gradually transformed by their guarded but growing friendship and by Molina’s obsession with the fantasy and romance of the movies.

Two prisoners, Luis Molina and Valentin Arregui, share a cell in a Buenos Aires prison. Molina is in jail for "corruption of a minor," while Valentin is a political prisoner who is part of a revolutionary group. The two men, opposites in every way, form an intimate bond in their cell, and their relationship changes both of them in profound ways.

Characters: 15 male, 3 female Scenery: Interior Winner of multiple Tony Awards including Best Musical, Kiss of the Spider Woman revamps a harrowing tale of persecution into a dazzling spectacle that juxtaposes gritty realities with liberating fantasies. Cell mates in a Latin American prison, Valentin is a tough revolutionary undergoing torture and Molina is an unabashed homosexual serving eight years for deviant behavior. Molina shares his fantasies about an actress, Aurora (originated on Br

This is the first biography, now available in paperback, of Manuel Puig (1932-1990), Argentinian author of Kiss of the Spider Woman and pioneer of high camp. Suzanne Jill Levine, his principal English translator, draws upon years of friendship as well as copious research and interviews

A young woman sits by her father’s deathbed, lamenting her failure to keep a promise to him… A struggling writer walks every inch of the city in search of inspiration, only to find it is much closer than she imagined… A girl collapses from hunger at the side of the road and is rescued by the most unlikely of saviours... In this powerful, debut collection, Rania Mamoun expertly blends the real and imagined to create a rich, complex and moving portrait of contemporary Sudan. From painful encounters with loved ones to unexpected new friendships, Mamoun illuminates the breadth of human experience and explores, with humour and compassion, the alienation, isolation and estrangement that is urban life. Translated from the Arabic by Elisabeth Jaquette. One of World Literature Today's 75 Notable Translations of 2019. One of The Guardian's 'Top 10 books about Sudan'. One of Bustle's '25 New Short Story Collections To Read This Summer'. One of Bookshy Book's 'Ten-Plus Short Story Collections from Writers of African Origin'. It is a phenomental, exacting collection. It's intense and intimate, and always bordering, with absolute control, on the subversive and erotic. It's also very funny - Rania Mamoun is an extraordinary talent.' - Preti Taneja, author of We That Are Young ‘A stunning collection, remarkable for its sweet clarity of voice and startling depictions of the marginalised and the destitute. With mastery, Rania Mamoun reaches straight into the heartbeat of her subject matter, laying bare humanity in all its tenderness and tenacity.’ - Leila Aboulela, author of Elsewhere Home

Henry James’ Greatest Short Fiction Achievement “What had the man had, to make him by the loss of it so bleed and yet live? Something—and this reached him with a pang—that he, John Marcher, hadn’t; the proof of which was precisely John Marcher’s arid end. No passion had ever touched him, for this was what passion meant; he had survived and maundered and pined, but where had been his deep ravage?... The escape would have been to love her; then, then he would have lived. ” - Henry James, The Beast in the Jungle and Other Stories Like a beast in the jungle, protagonist John Marcher waits for some catastrophic event to happen letting life and love pass by. Eventually, he discovers that tragedy has already occurred: nobody can give his wasted time back. The other two stories, ‘The Jolly Corner’ and ‘The Altar of the Dead’ are another great examples of Henry James’ wonderful craft and knowledge of the human soul. Xist Publishing is a digital-first publisher. Xist Publishing creates books for the touchscreen generation and is dedicated to helping everyone develop a lifetime love of reading, no matter what form it takes