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The Five Wives of Billy Tipton: A Work in Progress
Jazz performer Billy Tipton has a secret that, if discovered, will destroy everything he holds dear: his musical career, his most intimate relationships, his reputation --his very life. Under his stylish suits and sleek hairstyle and lady-killer persona lies the body of a woman -- an identity he assumed to get work in jazz bands starting in the 1930s, and that he keeps hidden for the rest of his life, even from the women he loves, in the pursuit of fame.
After nearly twenty years of hard work, relentless travel, and ulcers caused by his constant fear of being "outed," Billy's star finally rises. Leader of his own jazz band, a multi-record deal in hand, and a job offer as the permanent opening act for one of the world's most popular performers, Billy stands on the cusp of fame. But is the price too high?
THE FIVE WIVES OF BILLY TIPTON (a working title), my current work in progress, explores in fictional form the true story of the U.S. pianist, saxophonist, comic, and singer who lived in disguise for more than fifty years, until he died. Filled with humor and pathos, it asks: in a world in which all must play our assigned roles, what does it mean to live an authentic life?
After nearly twenty years of hard work, relentless travel, and ulcers caused by his constant fear of being "outed," Billy's star finally rises. Leader of his own jazz band, a multi-record deal in hand, and a job offer as the permanent opening act for one of the world's most popular performers, Billy stands on the cusp of fame. But is the price too high?
THE FIVE WIVES OF BILLY TIPTON (a working title), my current work in progress, explores in fictional form the true story of the U.S. pianist, saxophonist, comic, and singer who lived in disguise for more than fifty years, until he died. Filled with humor and pathos, it asks: in a world in which all must play our assigned roles, what does it mean to live an authentic life?
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First published September 9, 2023
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About the author
Sherry Jones
16 books438 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Sherry Jones is an American journalist and internationally best selling author of the controversial "The Jewel of Medina" and other historical fiction books.
Her forthcoming novel, THE FIVE WIVES OF BILLY TIPTON, explores the true-life story of transgender musician Billy Tipton and his marriages with five women, the last three of whom never knew that he was biologically female. Filled with Tipton's comic, homespun wit as well as the vibrant personalities of the colorful women he loved, THE FIVE WIVES OF BILLY TIPTON will take readers on a musical journey through the American midwest of the 1930s and 40s as well as the inner journey of a woman who lives for fifty year in disguise. In a world in which we all must play assigned roles, what must we do to live authentically. Is the price too high?
Jones's most recent novel, JOSEPHINE BAKER'S LAST DANCE (December 2018) features as its protagonist the 20th-century African-American entertainer Josephine Baker, who was born in the slums of St. Louis, made her fame on the Paris stage at 19, worked as a spy during WWII, and became an important civil rights activist in the United States. A comedian, nude dancer, chanteuse, opera diva, and film star, she was the highest-paid black performer in the world. The actress Paula Patton has optioned the media rights to this book and, in partnership with Viola Davis's JuVee production company, is seeking a studio to bring this book to the screen. JOSEPHINE BAKER'S LAST DANCE is scheduled for publication in Hungary.
Jones's 2014 novel, THE SHARP HOOK OF LOVE, tells of the forbidden, erotically-charged love affair between two of the Middle Ages' greatest intellectuals: Peter Abelard, headmaster of the Notre-Dame Cloister School and a poet whose good looks and love songs make women swoon; and Heloise d'Argenteuil, a beautiful woman scholar being groomed by her uncle to become an abbess.
Jones's other books are:
"White Heart," an e-novella about Blanche de Castille, the legendary White Queen of France, who braved sieges, scandal and heartache to protect the Crown from usurpers for her young son, King Louis IX (Saint Louis). The novella is a prequel to:
"Four Sisters, All Queens," about four sisters in 13th century Provence -- Margeurite, Eléonore, Sanchia, and Beatrice of Provence, who became queens of France, England, Germany, and Italy, also published in Serbia, Italy, and Poland.
Jones became the center of a national controversy in the summer of 2008 after Random House cancelled publication of her historical novel, The Jewel of Medina about Aisha, a wife of the Prophet Muhammad.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Random House had paid Jones a $100,000 advance for the novel when University of Texas Professor Denise Spellberg say a copy of the galleys and decided to "warn Muslims" of the pending publication of a novel that, in Spellberg's opinion, "made fun of Muslims and their history." Random House immediately cancelled publication.
Beaufort Books published the book in the U.S. in October 2008. Publishers in Germany, Italy, Denmark, Spain, Poland, Serbia, Brazil, Portugal, Hungary, Macedonia, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Greece, the Czech Republic, Sweden, and Albania have followed. It has been a best-seller in Serbia, Croatia, Albania, Kosovo, Germany, Italy, Poland, and Spain.
A sequel, "The Sword of Medina," continues the story of A'isha's life after Muhammad's death and the rivalry with his cousin, Ali, which led to the first Islamic civil war and the Sunni-Shia split. It has been published in a number of countries, as well, and was also a best-seller in Serbia. "The Sword of Medina" was awarded a silver medal in the IPPYs, the Independent Publisher Association's book of the year awards.
The controversy over her books has sent Jones on the lecture circuit, speaking in the U.S. and Europe on topics including
Sherry Jones is an American journalist and internationally best selling author of the controversial "The Jewel of Medina" and other historical fiction books.
Her forthcoming novel, THE FIVE WIVES OF BILLY TIPTON, explores the true-life story of transgender musician Billy Tipton and his marriages with five women, the last three of whom never knew that he was biologically female. Filled with Tipton's comic, homespun wit as well as the vibrant personalities of the colorful women he loved, THE FIVE WIVES OF BILLY TIPTON will take readers on a musical journey through the American midwest of the 1930s and 40s as well as the inner journey of a woman who lives for fifty year in disguise. In a world in which we all must play assigned roles, what must we do to live authentically. Is the price too high?
Jones's most recent novel, JOSEPHINE BAKER'S LAST DANCE (December 2018) features as its protagonist the 20th-century African-American entertainer Josephine Baker, who was born in the slums of St. Louis, made her fame on the Paris stage at 19, worked as a spy during WWII, and became an important civil rights activist in the United States. A comedian, nude dancer, chanteuse, opera diva, and film star, she was the highest-paid black performer in the world. The actress Paula Patton has optioned the media rights to this book and, in partnership with Viola Davis's JuVee production company, is seeking a studio to bring this book to the screen. JOSEPHINE BAKER'S LAST DANCE is scheduled for publication in Hungary.
Jones's 2014 novel, THE SHARP HOOK OF LOVE, tells of the forbidden, erotically-charged love affair between two of the Middle Ages' greatest intellectuals: Peter Abelard, headmaster of the Notre-Dame Cloister School and a poet whose good looks and love songs make women swoon; and Heloise d'Argenteuil, a beautiful woman scholar being groomed by her uncle to become an abbess.
Jones's other books are:
"White Heart," an e-novella about Blanche de Castille, the legendary White Queen of France, who braved sieges, scandal and heartache to protect the Crown from usurpers for her young son, King Louis IX (Saint Louis). The novella is a prequel to:
"Four Sisters, All Queens," about four sisters in 13th century Provence -- Margeurite, Eléonore, Sanchia, and Beatrice of Provence, who became queens of France, England, Germany, and Italy, also published in Serbia, Italy, and Poland.
Jones became the center of a national controversy in the summer of 2008 after Random House cancelled publication of her historical novel, The Jewel of Medina about Aisha, a wife of the Prophet Muhammad.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Random House had paid Jones a $100,000 advance for the novel when University of Texas Professor Denise Spellberg say a copy of the galleys and decided to "warn Muslims" of the pending publication of a novel that, in Spellberg's opinion, "made fun of Muslims and their history." Random House immediately cancelled publication.
Beaufort Books published the book in the U.S. in October 2008. Publishers in Germany, Italy, Denmark, Spain, Poland, Serbia, Brazil, Portugal, Hungary, Macedonia, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Greece, the Czech Republic, Sweden, and Albania have followed. It has been a best-seller in Serbia, Croatia, Albania, Kosovo, Germany, Italy, Poland, and Spain.
A sequel, "The Sword of Medina," continues the story of A'isha's life after Muhammad's death and the rivalry with his cousin, Ali, which led to the first Islamic civil war and the Sunni-Shia split. It has been published in a number of countries, as well, and was also a best-seller in Serbia. "The Sword of Medina" was awarded a silver medal in the IPPYs, the Independent Publisher Association's book of the year awards.
The controversy over her books has sent Jones on the lecture circuit, speaking in the U.S. and Europe on topics including
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