Garden of Ashes

Cookie Mueller’s Garden of Ashes brings together ten stories, autobiographical accounts of her ascent to cult-cinema superstardom, with tales dedicated to several of her fellow Dreamlanders.

Writer, actress, underground It Girl and overall cult figure Cookie Mueller (1949–1989) is among the most beloved authors originally published by Hanuman Books. Radical in spirit and exactingly composed, Mueller’s work has had a significant cultural comeback in recent years through new collections and literary portraits. Mueller was famously immortalized on screen as a member of the film director John Waters' Dreamlanders, whose poignant oral histories suffuse her texts with sensitivity and gravitas.

Cookie Mueller (1949–1989) was an American writer, actress, and advice columnist, best remembered as a regular cast member of some of the director John Waters's groundbreaking films, including Multiple Maniacs, Pink Flamingos, Female Trouble, and Desperate Living. She died from AIDS-related complications in 1989.

Author: Cookie Mueller
Publisher: Hanuman Editions
Page Count: 156pp
Size: 2.75 x 4.25
Notes: paperback, 4th printing
Date of Publication: August 31, 2026
ISBN: 979–8–989378–03–6