In 26 chapters, Love, Blood and Rhinestones tells the intimate and painful, but honest stories of McLemore Smith and others who were caught in a storm for the fight of their lives. The book brings to the surface messages that are traditionally unheard, ignored and otherwise sidelined.
Raw scenes in an emergency room, dialogue that is both disturbing and illuminating, and feelings excavated from
the deepest—and darkest—places all contribute to the book’s accessibility and the power to teach.
Asked about the name on the book’s cover, McLemore Smith offers a sobering explanation. “ ‘D. Lynn Baldwin’ is really a composite of people, including me, who want to share our experiences in story form,” he said. “The format as well as the collective voices is for many readers a more palatable and informative way to convey what has been a very taboo subject for way too long.”