The Books
The Secret Magdalene Publisher: Crown/Random House, English world rights, 2007.
Praise for The Secret Magdalene.
Audio: Books on Tape.
Utajená MagdalenaPublisher: Knizi Klub Czech rights 2007
El Secreto de Maria MagdelenaPublisher:
La Factoria de Ideas
Spanish rights, 2006.
“Author Ki Longfellow offers us an astonishingly real portrait of one of Christianity’s most controversial figures.
“From forgiven sinner to leader of the first Christians, from prostitute to 'Knower of the All,' the Church relegated Mary Magdalene to a secondary place in history for two thousand years. Now, with the 1945 discovery of the scrolls of Nag Hammadi, we can know what really happened. The 'most beloved disciple' reveals herself with all the splendor of her true form, in a captivating, emotional novel full of humanity. THE SECRET MAGDALENE is a definitive portrait of one of Christianity’s most controversial figures.”—Journal.com
China Blues. Publishers: HarperCollins, Britain, 1989,
Doubleday, US, 1989.
Also translated into Spanish, Hebrew, Swedish, Czech, & German.
Audio version by Soundings, 1990.
“Offbeat, unruly characters and vibrant atmosphere spill over the pages of this promising first novel set in San Francisco during Prohibition. Lizzie Stafford has every little thing a rich girl could want. But the view from Nob Hill pales in comparison to the world her flat-broke journalist pal Kit Downie mines for his stories. The joint is jumping at the Blue Canary, a lavish brothel run by Rose St. Lorraine, a Mae West-type madam with a tart tongue and a soft heart. There Lizzie can forget her faithless, politically ambitious husband and dabble in forbidden love with a cool-eyed Chinese gangster while Kit pines for her, and Dido, an icy, black chanteuse, longs for Kit. Bootlegging, the Tong Wars, smoky speakeasies, inept mobsters and the Teapot Dome scandal zigzag through these pages like streaks of lightning. The Jazz Era leaps to life...”—Publisher’s Weekly
“A real rollercoaster of a ride through San Francisco in the year 1923. This was the year that President Warren Harding died in the City by the Bay of mysterious causes. This was the year organized crime was spreading like a virus across America. From Chinatown to Nob Hill to the Tenderloin, San Francisco then—like now—had it all. And so does CHINA BLUES. If you ever walked the streets of Chinatown and wondered just what the hell was going on behind all those closed doors, this is the book for you. It's also chock full of city history come alive and adance with living breathing characters, not the least of which is the city itself.”—Amazon review
German edition: Der Blaue Drache.
“An unusual love story, an exciting gangster story in one.”
“A high-carat harvest of pleasure!”—Bookcrossing.com
Chasing WomenPublisher: HarperCollins, Britain, 1993.
“Explores the myths about ‘a woman in a man's world’—The time is 1929; the place Madison Square Garden; the event the Heavyweight Championship of the World. In the audience two young journalist vie for the big story. Both lovers and competitors, Jack and Teddy spat as seriously as the men in the ring, Teddy is a lone woman in what is very much a man’s world, but they don’t come tougher or more determined.
"A love which slugs its way into passion against all odds is at the center of this vivid novel of twenties high life, low life, where gangsters, rackets and sudden death proliferate.
"Amidst mafia machinations, mayhem, and murder, Jack and Teddy risk life, limb and their love as they strive for the Front Page; the sports page is no longer enough for Teddy.”
“If ever you were a fan of Thirties screwball comedy, then here’s your chance to relive it again, this time on the written page. This is a delightful, fast-paced homage to all those wise-cracking madcaps, but with a twist. At the heart of CHASING WOMEN is a mystery, a whodunit, a ‘what’s happening?’ so clever that when the who of whodunit appears, you’re left gaping. Tremendous fun, wickedly good writing, and characters that steal your heart.”—Bristol Evening Post.
Stinkfoot, an English Comic Opera.
Publisher: Sea Urchin Editions (1 Feb 2003) in English.
“A musical comedy, or, as Vivian Stanshall would have it, an English Comic Opera in The Grand Tradition. Stanshall (1943-95) wrote it together with his wife, Ki Longfellow-Stanshall, for their Old Profanity Showboat in Bristol, where it was staged by the Crackpot Theatre Company in December 1985. This book documents these shows. It contains the script of the musical, the lyrics of the songs, photographs, artwork by Vivian Stanshall, and an introduction by Ki Longfellow-Stanshall. The comedy is set in a typically English end-of-the-pier theatre, where the once great music hall artiste Soliquisto and his company have descended for a week. Nine years earlier Soliquisto's greatest creation, a singing and dancing cat called Stinkfoot, disappeared mysteriously from the very same theatre. Soliquisto still mourns for the loss of this talented cat and is shrouded in memories of better days.”
“Nothing like it before, and I don't imagine there ever will be anything like it again. Not without Vivian Stanshall in the world. When something is really unique, well, there you go. It's not a play, not quite an opera, though there's a bit of both throughout. It certainly is touched with a fond memory of music hall. It is a musical comedy, that's for sure. But not your standard everyday British A. L. Weber crap...ie: no melody, no lyrics to speak of, no surprises (except spectacle). It's not Broadway, although there are a few show-stoppers in it. What it is, is bright and strange and clever and moving and memorable. It's something only Stanshall could have made...with the addition of his equally clever and unusual wife. Come back, Vivian. And forgive us.”—Amazon review
Secrets of Mary Magdalene Publisher: CDS Books; 1st edition (August 2006)
“Continuing in the tradition of the New York Times bestselling SECRETS OF THE CODE, the latest book from the "Secrets" team, SECRETS OF MARY MAGDALENE, brings together world class experts from different faiths, backgrounds, and perspectives, to discuss the most thought-provoking new ideas and original thinking about Mary Magdalene.
”All of the contributors to SECRETS OF MARY MAGDALENE are well-known and highly respected authors whose books have sold more than five million copies in total. Never before has such a wide range of fascinating ideas and new scholarship about Mary Magdalene been collected in one book that is so timely, popular and accessible.”— Bookreporter.com review
“Only read one other book in this series since I'm not a Grail man, but did read the fourth because I am very much a Jesus and Magdalene man. Written by so many Magdalene enthusiasts, scholars, and artists, therefore written from so many points of view, naturally this book is going to please in places, and perhaps not in others. It all depends on what the reader brings along with her/him. I brought along a certain admiration for many of the contributors, especially King and Haskins and Meyer, and a deep devotion to Pagels & Longfellow, so for these five I would have bought the book in any case. But it was very interesting to read the efforts of those I'd never heard of, or those whose inclusion puzzled me. I learned all over again that there's a world of Mary Magdalenes out there, each catering to the needs of various and sundry seekers. But what is really happening is the development in our exceedingly materialist times of a New Goddess of the West. This book is extremely helpful in following that delicious process. I'm giving it five stars for the truly good articles, but would like to have held back half a star for one or two of the choices made in contributors.”—Amazon review
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