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Desert of the Heart

By Jane Rule
Series: Virago Modern Classics
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Brief Description
This was the freedom she wanted, an animal freedom exposed to the emptiness of sky and land and water. As she stepped forward, Ann flipped into the water and was gone. Evelyn Hall, running from her disastrous marriage of sixteen years, arrives in the neon-lit desert... Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
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A classic of lesbian literature and a groundbreaking portrayal of queer love from 1964, now republished in Virago's green spine Classics With Bite style.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description
This was the freedom she wanted, an animal freedom exposed to the emptiness of sky and land and water. As she stepped forward, Ann flipped into the water and was gone.

Evelyn Hall, running from her disastrous marriage of sixteen years, arrives in the neon-lit desert heat of 1950s Reno - the only place in America where she can apply for a quick divorce. Arriving at her guesthouse she meets free-spirited Ann Childs, a casino 'change girl' fifteen years her junior. Overwhelmed by both the vast, lonely beauty of the Nevada desert and her magnetic attraction to Ann, Evelyn must gamble all her own certainties and conventions to win a new kind of freedom.

Bold, witty and shimmering with desire, this groundbreaking 60s novel is an unforgettable queer classic.

INTRODUCED BY JACKIE KAY

'An undisputed lesbian classic' SARAH WATERS

'Intelligent and utterly believable' JOYCE CAROL OATES

'Brave, bold and brilliant' JACKIE KAY

Series: Virago Modern Classics

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780349020877

Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 22 January 2026

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Virago Press Ltd

Contributors:

  • Introduction by Jackie Kay

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 20.0mm

Width: 126.0mm

Height: 196.0mm

Weight: 200g

Pages: 256

Collections

Fiction General Fiction Jane Rule Literary Fiction Series: Virago Modern Classics

About the Author

Jane Rule (1931-2007) was the author of several novels and essay collections, including the groundbreaking lesbian love story Desert of the Heart (1964), which was made into the feature film Desert Hearts. She was inducted into the Order of Canada in 2007. Born in New Jersey, Rule moved to Canada in 1956, and lived on Galiano Island, British Columbia, until her death at the age of seventy-six.

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