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Sailing Beyond the Sunset
Alfred P. Doblin
“A brilliantly woven tapestry of themes… expertly crafted situations and poignant queer love.”
—Dan Alvear, Out in Print: Queer Book Reviews
$19.95
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Description
Queer Love, Quick Wit, and Second Chances
Love, lust, laughter, and late-in-life reinvention fill Alfred P. Doblin’s Sailing Beyond the Sunset, a ten-story collection of gay short fiction for readers of LGBTQ+ literature who like their cocktails well-stirred, with a twist, and a slice of humor on the side.
You’ll return to The Crow, the neighborhood bar from Tales of the Lavender Twilight, then ride a subway car with two angels headed down the West Side. You’ll tumble into a riotous time-travel detour through E.M. Forster’s Howards End, and you’ll feel the hush of the early COVID pandemic as one man listens to his neighbors’ string quartets through an apartment ceiling, finding beauty in the middle of dread.
The book builds to a final, unforgettable journey: an octogenarian gay man leaves Riverside Drive for a road trip home to Troy, Michigan, determined to make peace with the past and claim whatever joy is still ahead.
Queer love, chosen family, a matchmaking mom, and a boldly energetic dachshund are included in Sailing Beyond the Sunset, a buoyant tribute to life lived without fear or judgment. That which we are, we are.
Praise for Sailing Beyond the Sunset
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About the Author
Alfred P. Doblin has spent most of his professional career working as a journalist, most notably as the Editorial Page Editor of The (Bergen) Record in New Jersey. Writing a twice-weekly column and editorials, he has been recognized by numerous state and national journalism associations, including the American Society of News Editors (ASNE) award for excellence in editorial writing, the Society of the Silurians, NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ+ Journalists, and was nominated four times for the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Newspaper Columnist. He was a finalist in both the 2024 and 2025 Saints and Sinners Fiction Contest, part of the Tennessee Williams & New Orleans Literary Festival. His debut book, Tales of the Lavender Twilight, a collection of 11 short stories, was published in 2025. He is also the grandson of the German novelist Alfred Döblin. Currently working in communications, Doblin lives in Brooklyn, NY. Sailing Beyond the Sunset is his second published collection.
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Praise
Praise for Sailing Beyond the Sunset
“Doblin is a master storyteller—glorious, witty, and brilliant. Unfailingly clever and constantly heartfelt, Sailing Beyond the Sunset captures the ecstatic joys and introspective aches of relationships.”
“If you like stories that are poignant, packed with keen observations, snappy dialogue reminiscent of Hollywood’s Golden Age and hit the mark with pinpoint accuracy about life, aging and love, Doblin’s Sailing Beyond the Sunset is for you.”
“Sailing Beyond the Sunset is a glorious collection of short stories populated by a variety of characters navigating the challenges, dreams, fragility and complexity of life. Doblin has created a work bristling with wit, imagination, and insight.”
“A brilliantly woven tapestry of themes… expertly crafted situations and poignant queer love.”