Tales of the Lavender Menace: A Memoir of Liberation

Rating:
Summary: Interesting times, but this account lacks introspection
Review: I found reading this book a little like looking through a high school yearbook. It has a certain "those were the days, my friends" feel to it. It's interesting mainly because the times were interesting, and it's fun to look back. But it left me wanting something more substantial.

There are details galore about the titillating (sex, drugs, agents provocateurs, etc.). In contrast, there's very little of the emotional candor or 20/20 hindsight one might expect after the passing of thirty years.

In the Epilogue Ms. Jay writes "It is hard for me to explain how the protagonist of this memoir emerged as a tenured full professor ... I am no longer the person at the center of this political autobiography, not even vaguely..."

And that's exactly my problem with the book. Jay offers a chronicle of events -- large and small -- but there's little of the introspection and reflection I expect in a personal memoir.

Rating:
Summary: An accurate celebratory account of very special days.
Review: I shared some, though by no means all, of the exciting times described by Karla Jay in her book. I am very proud to have worked with her on four books, and pleased to remain her friend. This shouldn't disqualify me from recommending this book to friends and stranger alike. The word "liberation" in the title of this book is key. Read this book to find out more about the pioneers of feminism and gay liberation. You'll learn a lot and have a good time. I laughed out loud at some lines I've heard before, and some that were new to me. You'll surely enjoy Karla's humor, too, along with her honesty and compassion for her fellow human beings, male and female.

Rating:
Summary: Fabulous background on early rad-fem and gay-lib
Review: Karla Jay gives the most intimate-and politically interesting-view of the early years of radical feminism and gay liberation (roughly 1968-1971) that I've seen. Alongside the moving sketch of her own tragic family, the book gives a close-up view of some of the movements' then-key players, the political thinking of the time, and lots of 1960s-era sex. Very clear-eyed in its political assessments, giving both a sense of how seductive it was to be a 'radical' then-without any excuses for some of the era's whackier ideas. Essential and fabulous background for understanding today's lesbian and gay politics.