Secret City: The Hidden History of Gay Washington, by James Kirchick, Henry Holt and Co., 848 pages, $29.99
During J. Edgar Hoover's 48 years as FBI director, people often gossiped about whether his bedroom tastes were as straight as his agents' marksmanship, citing everything from his fondness for socializing in male groups to his close relationship with longtime deputy Clyde Tolson. Spreading such rumors might earn you a visit from the FBI itself: As James Kirchick relates in Secret City, the bureau made it a practice to "detect, hunt down, and intimidate private citizens who spoke ill of the director."
