The Mayor of Castro Street: The Life and Times of Harvey Milk (Stonewall Inn Editions) Summary and Reviews

The Mayor of Castro Street: The Life and Times of Harvey Milk (Stonewall Inn Editions)
by Randy Shilts

The Mayor of Castro Street: The Life and Times of Harvey Milk (Stonewall Inn Editions)
Our Price: $54.71
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions


or

Book Summary Information

Author: Randy Shilts
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Format: Illustrated
Published: 1988-03-15
ISBN: 0312019009
Number of pages: 388
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

Book Reviews of The Mayor of Castro Street: The Life and Times of Harvey Milk (Stonewall Inn Editions)

Book Review: Remembering Harvey Milk
Summary: 5 Stars

Shilts, Randy. "The Mayor of Castro Street", St. Martin's, 2008.

Remembering Harvey Milk

Amos Lassen

Harvey Milk is an icon in gay history and now with the film, Milk" with an amazing performance by Sean Penn, there is a renewed interest in the man that did so much to advance gay rights. St. Martin's has reissued Randy Shilts' biography of Milk, "The Mayor of Castro Street", which is a remarkable study of Milk as well as social history and a look at the world of politics. The book is not only a powerful character study but a fascinating history of the California gay movement and an intense look at city politics.
Before he was even elected to political office, Harvey Milk was known as the mayor of Castro Street. Shilts takes a look at Milk's personal and political life and his assassination and these reflect the mood of gay America and the real beginning of the emergence of gay rights and the road to gay political power. Here is a history of personal tragedy and political intrigue, of rioting in the streets and how justice was miscarried. However more than that, this is the story of gay power and gay hope.
Randy Shilts always gives a good reading experience and it is too bad that he is no longer with us. "The Mayor of Castro Street" was his first book and he chose a great topic to begin his literary career. He looks at how we, as gay men, were treated in the 1940's and 50's, writes about what happened at Stonewall and then shifts the scene to San Francisco and the Castro, the California center of gay life during Milk's time. We learn of how Milk began his political quest and we feel his sense of humor and dramatics. There is a lot of information here and added plus is the author was once a friend of Harvey Milk which gives us a little more insight.
The book is episodic in nature and each episode begins with a tag line that leads into what was happening. The volume reads like a non-fiction novel as we get a chronology of the gay rights movement in 380 pages. Shilts also knew how to appeal to human emotion and there were instances when I read with tears in my eyes. Milk was an epic hero who lived a somewhat epic life but Shilts manages to let us know him as a simple man with a simple dream. Shilts also leaves no stone unturned and his research is meticulous--including his interviews with two of Milk's lovers.
Another interesting aspect is that even though Shilts and Milk were friends, the author is able to maintain objectivity throughout. His sense of detail is also wonderful and with that he draws the reader in and holds him. Shilts gives an honest and illuminating portrait of the champion of gay rights; one that should be read by any member of the community who wants to know where we were and how far we have come.

Biographies & Memoirs Books

Book Subjects
Most talked about in Sf Bay Area and California Books
Hell's Angel: The Life and Times of Sonny Barger and the Hell's Angels Motorcycle Club ImageHell's Angel: The Life and Times of Sonny Barger and the Hell's Angels Motorcycle Club
by Sonny Barger, Keith Zimmerman, Kent Zimmerman
Harper Paperbacks; Published: 2001-10-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.07
Price in other shops: $14.00
Borderlines: A Memoir ImageBorderlines: A Memoir
by Caroline Kraus
Broadway; Published: 2004-02-24; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $2.18
Price in other shops: $23.95
The Rice Room: Growing Up Chinese-American from Number Two Son to Rock 'n' Roll ImageThe Rice Room: Growing Up Chinese-American from Number Two Son to Rock 'n' Roll
by Ben Fong-Torres
Plume; Published: 1995-05-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.88
Price in other shops: $15.00
Fugitive Days: A Memoir ImageFugitive Days: A Memoir
by Bill Ayers
Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 2003-01-28; Paperback; Book
Price in other shops: $15.00
The Mayor of Castro Street: The Life and Times of Harvey Milk (Stonewall Inn Editions) ImageThe Mayor of Castro Street: The Life and Times of Harvey Milk (Stonewall Inn Editions)
by Randy Shilts
St. Martin's Griffin; Published: 1988-03-15; Paperback; Book
Best price: $17.94
Street Zen: The Life and Work of Issan Dorsey ImageStreet Zen: The Life and Work of Issan Dorsey
by David Schneider
Da Capo Press; Published: 2000-06-06; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.87
Price in other shops: $13.95
Despite Everything ImageDespite Everything
by Aaron Cometbus
Last Gasp; Published: 2002-08; Paperback; Book
Best price: $10.95
Price in other shops: $16.95
Berkeley!: A Literary Tribute ImageBerkeley!: A Literary Tribute
Heyday Books; Published: 1997-11; Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.00
Price in other shops: $14.95
Berkeley 1900, Daily Life at the Turn of the Century ImageBerkeley 1900, Daily Life at the Turn of the Century
by Richard Schwartz
RSB Books; Published: 2000-06; Paperback; Book
Best price: $26.82
Post Office ImagePost Office
by Charles Bukowski
Ecco; Published: 2002-06-05; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.56
Price in other shops: $15.00
Similar books summaries and other product reviews
Michael Tolliver Lives: A Novel ImageMichael Tolliver Lives: A Novel
by Armistead Maupin
HarperCollins; Published: 2007-06-12; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $7.99
Price in other shops: $25.95
The Laramie Project ImageThe Laramie Project
Warner Brothers; Release date: 2002-06-25; DVD
Best price: $5.12
Price in other shops: $14.98
Left Coast City: Progressive Politics in San Francisco, 1975-1991 ImageLeft Coast City: Progressive Politics in San Francisco, 1975-1991
by Richard Edward Deleon
University Press Of Kansas; Published: 1992-09-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $12.78
Price in other shops: $17.95
San Francisco's Castro   (CA)  (Images of America) ImageSan Francisco's Castro (CA) (Images of America)
by Strange De Jim
Arcadia Publishing; Published: 2003-11-23; Paperback; Book
Best price: $15.98
Price in other shops: $19.99
Conduct Unbecoming: Gays and Lesbians in the U.S. Military ImageConduct Unbecoming: Gays and Lesbians in the U.S. Military
by Randy Shilts
St. Martin's Griffin; Published: 2005-07-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.75
Price in other shops: $19.95
And the Band Played On ImageAnd the Band Played On
Warner Brothers; Release date: 2001-06-05; DVD
Best price: $7.08
Price in other shops: $14.98
The Mayor of Castro Street: The Life and Times of Harvey Milk ImageThe Mayor of Castro Street: The Life and Times of Harvey Milk
by Randy Shilts
St. Martin's Griffin; Published: 2008-10-14; Paperback; Book
Best price: $10.38
Price in other shops: $16.95
Faggots ImageFaggots
by Larry Kramer
Grove Press; Published: 2000-06-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.00
Price in other shops: $14.00
And the Band Played On: Politics, People, and the AIDS Epidemic, 20th-Anniversary Edition ImageAnd the Band Played On: Politics, People, and the AIDS Epidemic, 20th-Anniversary Edition
by Randy Shilts
St. Martin's Griffin; Published: 2007-11-27; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.58
Price in other shops: $16.95
The Times of Harvey Milk 1984 ImageThe Times of Harvey Milk 1984
Release date: 2004-06-08; DVD
Best price: $19.95
Price in other shops: $29.95