Status
Checked out
Due 10/23/2021
Call number
Collection
Publication
St. Martin's Press (2019), 320 pages
Description
History. Nonfiction. HTML: The never-before-told story of Brooklyn's vibrant and forgotten queer history, from the mid-1850s up to the present day Hugh Ryan's When Brooklyn Was Queer is a groundbreaking exploration of the LGBT history of Brooklyn, from the early days of Walt Whitman in the 1850s up through the queer women who worked at the Brooklyn Navy Yard during World War II, and beyond. No other book, movie, or exhibition has ever told this sweeping story. Not only has Brooklyn always lived in the shadow of queer Manhattan neighborhoods like Greenwich Village and Harlem, but there has also been a systematic erasure of its queer history-a great forgetting. Ryan is here to unearth that history for the first time. In intimate, evocative, moving prose he discusses in new light the fundamental questions of what history is, who tells it, and how we can only make sense of ourselves through its retelling; and shows how the formation of the Brooklyn we know today is inextricably linked to the stories of the incredible people who created its diverse neighborhoods and cultures. Through them, When Brooklyn Was Queer brings Brooklyn's queer past to life, and claims its place as a modern classic..… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member richardderus
I RECEIVED AN ARC OF THIS BOOK FROM ST. MARTIN'S PRESS. THANK YOU.
One of my very favorite possessions is this hardcover copy I received after the Déluge of 2019 ruined my ARC. The author tells us from the start that I use the catchall queer...to refer to people whose sexuality or gender identity
That is all the explanation you need for how, and why, he wrote this history of being "other" in the US's biggest city. It's deeply researched, very well-written, and fascinating to read. Who knew Gypsy Rose Lee and Carson McCullers were close? Who had any idea that Coney Island was known as a queer neighborhood before it was known as a boardwalk and sideshow mecca?
It's enjoyable to learn about New York's most-populous borough with author Hugh Ryan.
One of my very favorite possessions is this hardcover copy I received after the Déluge of 2019 ruined my ARC. The author tells us from the start that I use the catchall queer...to refer to people whose sexuality or gender identity
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isn’t conventional for their time, which helps me avoid projecting specific modern identities (such as gay or transgender) on folks for whom those ideas wouldn’t necessarily have made a lot of sense.That is all the explanation you need for how, and why, he wrote this history of being "other" in the US's biggest city. It's deeply researched, very well-written, and fascinating to read. Who knew Gypsy Rose Lee and Carson McCullers were close? Who had any idea that Coney Island was known as a queer neighborhood before it was known as a boardwalk and sideshow mecca?
It's enjoyable to learn about New York's most-populous borough with author Hugh Ryan.
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LibraryThing member Charlotte_Kinzie
Hugh Ryan is an interesting fellow, so when I saw this book was coming out I was intrigued! Hugh is a curator of queer history, a writer and speaker and New York is his home. If someone was going to write the queer history of Brooklyn then this was the man.
I haven't read a queer history book
The book, of course, tells the stories of some of the more famous queer people living in the area...but also gives the reader a better understanding of what life in the 1850s and forward was like an LGBTQ person.
Consider giving this a read if you're interested in history! This might surprise you!
I haven't read a queer history book
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before, books about specific events or people sure, but this one is fascinating. This begins around the time of Walt Whitman. Ryan writes about the way that the waterfront "created conditions that allowed queer lives to flourish in Brooklyn." It was a diverse community that was a place of privacy and numbers...and allowed queer folks to live in relative safety. But has that history been deliberately forgotten? The book, of course, tells the stories of some of the more famous queer people living in the area...but also gives the reader a better understanding of what life in the 1850s and forward was like an LGBTQ person.
Consider giving this a read if you're interested in history! This might surprise you!
Show Less
LibraryThing member Charlotte_Kinzie
Hugh Ryan is an interesting fellow, so when I saw this book was coming out I was intrigued! Hugh is a curator of queer history, a writer and speaker and New York is his home. If someone was going to write the queer history of Brooklyn then this was the man.
I haven't read a queer history book
The book, of course, tells the stories of some of the more famous queer people living in the area...but also gives the reader a better understanding of what life in the 1850s and forward was like an LGBTQ person.
Consider giving this a read if you're interested in history! This might surprise you!
I haven't read a queer history book
Show More
before, books about specific events or people sure, but this one is fascinating. This begins around the time of Walt Whitman. Ryan writes about the way that the waterfront "created conditions that allowed queer lives to flourish in Brooklyn." It was a diverse community that was a place of privacy and numbers...and allowed queer folks to live in relative safety. But has that history been deliberately forgotten? The book, of course, tells the stories of some of the more famous queer people living in the area...but also gives the reader a better understanding of what life in the 1850s and forward was like an LGBTQ person.
Consider giving this a read if you're interested in history! This might surprise you!
Show Less
LibraryThing member Big_Bang_Gorilla
This is, as one might hope, an excellent account of its stated subject. Additionally, the author casts his net pretty widely and adds many tangents, usually interesting, that extend into other areas, notably entertainment history, the seemingly never-ending infatuation with sexuality on the part of
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American government, and Robert Moses' reinvention of New York City (though I found that last less interesting). I particularly liked the author's empathy with the mindset of people in ages past; the book extends chronologically from the days of Walt Whitman to the eve of the Stonewall riots. Quibbles would include an embarrassingly elementary arithmetic error and the author's evident distaste for the word 'whom', which corrupts a good many of his usually well-crafted sentences. Show Less
LibraryThing member psalva
An excellent recapturing of a section of NY queer history that is largely forgotten or glossed over. While some stories, particularly those of white men who were artists or authors, are more known, Ryan does a good job capturing some stories of lesser known figures. I really appreciated learning
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about the changes in culture as well as perceptions of sexuality/gender throughout the years. Also, the information about the upsetting decline of vibrant Brooklyn queer life after WWII was brilliantly explained and made me so angry. Nonetheless, I’m grateful to leave the book having a long list of people who I want to read more about. I feel like that in itself is a gift. Show Less
Awards
Lambda Literary Award (Finalist — 2020)
Publishing Triangle Awards (Finalist — Randy Shilts Award for Gay Nonfiction — 2020)
New York City Book Award (2019)
ALA Over the Rainbow Book List (Selection — 2020)
Language
Original language
English
Physical description
9.58 inches
ISBN
1250169917 / 9781250169914