In these reflections, colleagues, friends and admirers recall his risk-taking, his generosity and his insatiable taste for gossip.

Many of White's books chronicled his own experiences as a gay man, making an indelible impression on gay culture and how LGBTQ experiences were understood more broadly at the dawning of the AIDS health crisis.

Edmund White, who cracked open the conversation around gay sex in America, has died. He is survived by husband and fellow writer Michael Carroll.