The Martin Duberman Reader

The Essential Historical, Biographical, and Autobiographical Writings

In a single volume, an incisive collection of the key writings of the award-winning author and activist

“A deeply moral and reflective man who has engaged the greatest struggles of our times with an unflinching nerve, a wise heart, and a brilliant intellect.” —Jonathan Kozol

For the past fifty years, prizewinning historian Martin Duberman’s groundbreaking writings have established him as one of our preeminent public intellectuals. Founder of the first graduate program in LGBT studies in the country, he is perhaps best known for his biographies of Paul Robeson, Lincoln Kirstein, and Howard Zinn—works that have been hailed as “magnificent” (USA Today), “enthralling” (The Washington Post), “splendid” and “definitive” (Studs Terkel, Chicago Sun-Times), and “refreshing and inspiring” (The New York Times).

Duberman is also an equally gifted playwright and essayist, whose piercingly honest memoirs Cures and Midlife Queer have been called “witty and searingly candid” (Publishers Weekly), “wrenchingly eloquent” (Newsday) and “a moving chronicle” (The Nation). His writings have explored the shocking attempts by the medical establishment to “cure” homosexuality; Stonewall, before and after; the age of AIDS; the struggle for civil rights; the fight for economic and racial justice; and Duberman’s vision for reclaiming a radical queer past from the creeping centrism of the gay movement.

The Martin Duberman Reader assembles the core of Duberman’s most important writings, offering a wonderfully comprehensive overview of our lives and times—and giving us a crucial touchstone for a new generation of activists, scholars, and readers.

Praise

“A provocative collection that is thoughtful in both scope and attention to detail.”
Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“This collection not only serves as a wonderful introduction to Duberman’s writing but is also a fitting tribute to a man who has devoted his life to promoting social change.”
Publishers Weekly

News and Reviews

The American Bar Association has awarded Nell Bernstein’s Burning Down the Hous

Hold Tight Gently honored by the American Library Association

Award-winning author Martin Duberman’s Hold Tight Gently: Michael Callen, Essex Hemphill, and th

Publishers Weekly

Publishers Weekly reviews The Martin Duberman Reader

Lambda Literary

Lambda Literary interviews Martin Duberman about gay rights and the history of gay activism

Books by Martin Duberman

Howard Zinn
A Life on the Left

Martin Duberman

A Saving Remnant
The Radical Lives of Barbara Deming and David McReynolds

Martin Duberman

Radical Acts
Collected Political Plays

Martin Duberman

Paul Robeson
No One Can Silence Me: The Life of the Legendary Artist and Activist (Adapted for Young Adults)

Martin Duberman

Goodreads Reviews