We’re excited to announce the re-release of Orrie Hitt’s 1957 pulp classic Nudist Camp. Written by “The Shakespeare of Shabby Street” at the height of his remarkable career, this novel captures a unique moment in American cultural history when society teetered between post-war conservatism and the upcoming sexual revolution.
Hitt, one of the most prolific writers of the 1950s and ’60s, wrote around 150 books during his career, famously producing a new title every two weeks while sitting at his dining room table. Despite leading a quiet family life in upstate New York, he had an uncanny ability to chronicle the gritty underbelly of working-class America.
Nudist Camp follows Della, who welcomes a naturist club to camp on her property. But when the seductive Ada Holden arrives and sets her sights on Della’s husband, paradise becomes a battlefield. Now Della must fight fire with fire with the only weapon she has—her own glorious body!
Known for his meticulous research, Hitt even visited a nudist camp to gather material for this novel, one of his three works exploring the theme along with The Naked Flesh and My Wild Nights with Nine Nudists (written under the pseudonym Kay Addams).
Beyond its pulpy pleasures, Nudist Camp offers modern readers a fascinating window into 1950s America, exploring tensions between freedom and constraint, desire and propriety, that still resonate today. Expect vivid descriptions, snappy dialogue, and a plot that moves at a breakneck pace.
Cover design by Scott Sugiuchi.
