Founded in 1955, with nearly 200 books in print, City Lights publishes cutting-edge fiction, poetry, memoirs, literary translations and books on vital social and political issues.

Featured Titles from City Lights Publishers

Spying on Democracy
Government Surveillance, Corporate Power, and Public Resistance

Heidi Boghosian

"Everyone of us is under the omniscent magnifying glass of the government and corporate spies. How do we respond to this smog of surveillance? Start by reading Spying on Democracy: Government Surveillance, Corporate Power, and Public Resistance by Heidi Boghosian."—Bill Moyers

Yokohama Threeway
And Other Small Shames

Beth Lisick

Hot off the press! "Beth Lisick's kaleidoscopic whirlwind tour through her secret shames is the ultimate joyride for those of us who enjoy cringe-worthy embarrassment, genuine pathos, and an overdosing amount of schadenfreude."—Michael Ian Black

Ghost Tantras

Michael McClure

New from City Lights/Grey Fox! 50 years since its first publication, we present Michael McClure's signature work, Ghost Tantras, back in print. Grahhr!

Border Patrol Nation
Dispatches from the Front Lines of Homeland Security

Todd Miller

Coming in March: Fast-paced frontline reporting and analysis on the militaristic spread of the U.S. Border Patrol. "What Jeremy Scahill was to Blackwater, Todd Miller is to the U.S. Border Patrol!"--Tom Miller, author, On the Border

Tender Buttons
The Corrected Centennial Edition

Gertrude Stein, Seth Perlow

Coming in April: We present a centennial edition of the modernist classic featuring over 100 corrections by Stein herself. The Modern Language Association's Committee on Scholarly Editions has designated it an MLA Approved Edition. Congrats to editor Seth Perlow!

Lunch Poems
50th Anniversary Edition

Frank O'Hara

50th anniversary hardcover gift edition of the groundbreaking poetry collection by the leader of the "New York School" of poetry.

Howl and Other Poems
Pocket Poets Number 4

Allen Ginsberg

The epigraph for Howl is from Walt Whitman: "Unscrew the locks from the doors!/Unscrew the doors themselves from their jambs!" Announcing his intentions with this ringing motto, Allen Ginsberg published a volume of poetry which broke so many social...

Woman with Guitar
Memphis Minnie's Blues

Paul Garon, Beth Garon

A vivid portrait of one of the blues' most influential female artists, and the popular poetry of her lyrics.