Odd Girls and Twilight Lovers: A History of Lesbian Life in Twentieth-Century America

We need this history now more than ever in a world that teaches lesbians to hate themselves. There has been nothing more damaging to the lesbian community than the transgender movement, may it please end soon. Why are there so many parents out there who are willing to sacrifice their daughter's bodies to create the illusion of heterosexuality?If you are asking yourself, "am I in the right/wrong body?" what you ought to be asking yourself is, "why is society teaching me to hate myself because I don't conform to their brand of femininity?" Once, not so very long ago, this community had a vibrant butch subculture. These were our warriors; now they mostly call themselves 'they/them/he/him' and live in denial while the medical and psychiatric communities make millions off of them.One day this community will wake up from the medical and psychiatric trauma that has been inflicted on them and they will discover this history and find their place in it.Faderman's book will wake you up to the history that is slowly being eroded. Read it and know it before it is too late.

I'm learning so much about lesbian history in the US from this book! I would definitely recommend it.The author seems unbiased and cautious when claiming that historical figures were gay. And unlike many scholars today, she avoids labeling lesbians from history (even gender-nonconforming ones) as trans men. She understands that to dress up as a man meant something different in a world that gave women very few options.The one thing I disagree with her on is that she holds a culturally-based view of lesbianism, claiming that people are not necessarily "born gay". Even though I disagree, I understand where she's coming from, and it doesn't keep me from enjoying the book.

Proceeding decade by decade, this history traces the ways that lesbians’ choices and possibilities were constrained and amplified by the changes in society as a whole. Although the many details and interviews are very interesting, the one flaw in the narrative is that it tends towards the repetitive, making every point several times in a somewhat didactic way. Still, the book is well worth reading even all these years after it first appeared.

Although slightly outdated as it was published in the early 90s (very minor differences in some terminology) this book is a wonderful compilation of lesbian AND bisexual women's history in the United States. Not only was it a fun read (not totally dry, like some nonfiction) it had tons of primary texts cited. It really goes into depth on all of the combining factors that led to widespread homophobia in the United States too, as well as social dynamics in queer circles in the past. A very interesting read and the photos are a nice addition as well.

I wanted to learn more about my history and lesbian culture and I definitely found it in this book. Though Faderman doesn't do very well with hiding her biases at the same time it wasn't too difficult to treat the book as a part of history and not a tell-all authority on it.It's important to note that Faderman seems to purposefully leave out trans men and trans women from her histories, and some of her views on lesbian movements in the 70s and 80s (the times, I would think, that most effected her present while writing the book) are strikingly biased. But, none the less this book is now almost 28 years old which makes it more a part of history than an authority on it, and it's well worth the read - as long as you make an effort to read other histories and do your own research.

I enjoyed reading this book. It gives a thorough history of queer women that was interesting to see how we got to current day events, how far we've come, and how history goes in waves. It is jammed packed with information.

I had to delete this review due to mistaken information. Since I have canceled the purchase, I cannot read it to give an accurate review.

Informative, but intentionally erases trans men and women's experiences. Apparently the author writes for general LGBT things though nowadays.

Excellent historical coverage. Highly recommended.

Excellent writer, mesmerisingly interesting book.

very informative