As he was turning 40, Walt Whitman wrote twelve poems in a small handmade book he entitled "Live Oak, With Moss." Known only to scholars, these unpublished poems were intensely private reflections on his attraction to and affection for other men. They were also Whitman's most adventurous explorations of the theme of same-sex love, composed decades before the concept of "homosexual" came into use. For this extraordinarily beautiful and passionate cluster of poems, illustrator Brian Selznick offers a provocative visual narrative, while Whitman scholar Karen Karbiener reconstructs the story of their creation.

"In harmony, the art, the poems, and the analysis all honor while illuminating Whitman's work and make it more accessible to contemporary readers."—Publishers Weekly