The Sexual Outlaw

work by Rechy

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July 16, 2026

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The Sexual Outlaw (1977) is a nonfictional work by John Rechy that serves as a "prose documentary" exploring three days and nights within the sexual underground. Rechy, an American novelist known for his semiautobiographical works, often delves into the lives of sexual and social outsiders. His writing frequently draws on his Mexican American heritage and examines themes of obsession and identity. City of Night (1963), his first novel, follows a young homosexual hustler, and other works like Numbers and This Day's Death continue to explore complex personal and social landscapes.1

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John Rechy
The nonfictional The Sexual Outlaw (1977) is Rechy’s “prose documentary” of three days and nights in the sexual underground. In The Miraculous Day of Amalia Gómez (1991), set in the barrio of Los Angeles, Rechy makes use of the techniques of magic realism. His other novels included…
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The nonfictional The Sexual Outlaw (1977) is Rechy’s “prose documentary” of three days and nights in the sexual underground. In The Miraculous Day of Amalia Gómez (1991), set in the barrio of Los Angeles, Rechy makes use of the techniques of magic realism. His other novels included…
Read More