Imagined Life

This is a new book. Condition: Brand New.

A taut, elegiac and engrossing read, The Imagined Life follows Steven Mills, a man in a struggling marriage who becomes obsessed with uncovering the truth about the father who vanished from his life when he was only twelve.

Driving up the coast of California, Steven seeks out his father's friends, family, and former colleagues, and is transported back to his 1980s childhood: his parents' legendary pool parties, black-and-white films on the backyard projector, his father's male friends in the cabana house... With every revelation his father becomes more difficult to recognize, and, with every insight, Steven must confront truths about his own life.

In cinematic prose, Andrew Porter explores the full nexus of male relationships: fathers and sons, husbands and lovers-set achingly against the US AIDS epidemic in the 1980s-and masterfully weaves a tale of trauma, generational secrets, forbidden love, and shame.

Book details and technical specifications

Format: Paperback / softback
ISBN13: 9781787705906
Published: August 2025

Number of pages: 288
Width: 135 mm
Height: 210 mm
Depth: not specified

Publisher: Europa Editions (UK) Ltd