JT Leroy -- the acclaimed author and all-around man-of-mystery -- doesn’t really like jeans: “Most of them are too stiff on me. I am a delicate flower,” he explains. Even working as a writer on the set of HBO’s Wild West drama “Deadwood,” where, as he puts it, there are a “lotta cowboys in a lotta jeans around here,” hasn’t swayed his anti-denim opinions. Rather, he sticks to cozier cowboy gear: “I like flannel… and I’ve been wearing a lot of jodhpurs lately.”

Gung-ho on changing his feelings, we sent him a pair of Kicking Mule Workshop jeans, which are made from Japanese selvedge, styled around classic American fits, and feel like your favorite vintage jeans.

And, yeah, we’ve read all the conspiracy theories that suggest Leroy doesn’t exist. We decided to buck ‘em. Suffice it to say, whoever received the Kicking Mules -- and we do believe it was Leroy -- thought they were pretty kick-ass. In his own words:

“Kicking Mule, love the name. I am glad they didn't call them Barfing Mule, or worse still, Kicking Ass – then nobody could wear them, no matter how swell they are. It would be stating the obvious, coz these jeans somehow do make the buttocks kick. And they know it, so this is clever subliminal coding.

“And what is the point of jeans anyway? I mean if your thighs are fat, they ain’t gonna look any thinner really. They might kinda hold in your belly, but it will be obvious that there is some corset action being annexed. And the quality jeans don't do that. They are soft in texture -- they ain’t using material that is advantageous for hauling potatoes, which will bind your belly in.

“These Kicking Mules will yield to your curves. The pair I got had a really rich lush dark pigment – not vat-factory-dyed. The stitching on the pockets swirls loopy…like my signature when loaded. But again… all this is beside the point. Somehow when it comes to the tushie, these jeans get proactive. They mold and shape, shift and lift, and do what they say… they make your ass kick.”

What he wore them with: “My Calvin Klein boxers”

Where he wore them: “My favorite SF restaurant, Aziza (5800 Geary Blvd., San Francisco; 415-752-2222). And I ate too much but they are so yielding; I wasn't in pain.”

Get Yours:

Kicking Mule Workshop jeans, $220-225, available at Ron Herman in L.A. (310-550-0910) and Odin (212-475-0666) in NYC. For more info, kickingmuleworkshop.com

JT Leroy’s books -- Sarah, The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things, and Harold’s End, are all available on amazon.com

Stuff that stocking with Raccoon Penis Bones! On JT’s website, they’re described as “sexual amulets, used from Texas to Appalachia to enhance sexual performance.” $17 a bone and they come autographed by JT, available on jtleroy.com

Or, for the kids, get an autographed whiffle ball, $8, available on jtleroy.com