Reviews
" Robert Duncan in San Francisco offers a surprising portrait of a mentor in all his witty, wicked, luminous, and vulnerable complexity. Straddling the lines of memoir and cultural history, Michael Rumaker gives a rare and delightful view of Duncan at home in the gay community while also documenting the struggles of that community in 1950s America."--Lisa Jarnot, author of Robert Duncan, The Ambassador from Venus, "This is a wonderfully revealing account of a series of life-changing collisions between a young writer (Rumaker), an older writer(Duncan), a still older mentor for both (Charles Olson), a city (San Francisco), and an important era in American literature (the 1950s), when it was being turned upside down by the individuals and their friends. It's also a tender and intelligent account of a young man's coming to grips with being gay in the midst of this upheaval. Much more than memir; it's history."-- Russell Banks "Robert Duncan in San Francisco offers a surprising portrait of a mentor in all his witty, wicked, luminous, and vulnerable complexity. Straddling the lines of memoir and cultural history, Michael Rumaker gives a rare and delightful view of Duncan at home in the gay community while also documenting the struggles of that community in 1950s America." -- Lisa Jarnot , author of Robert Duncan, The Ambassador from Venus "In this fine memoir of his 16 months in San Francisco, Rumaker learns may reasons about being at home with who he is, in what he calls 'Robert's city.'"-- Joanne Kyger, "This expanded edition of a local classic is not only a portrait of the S.F. Renaissance poet, but also a glimpse of pre-Stonewall gay life in the late-1950s. Author Michael Rumaker knew Duncan, and he shares the good with the bad, set against legendary North Beach haunts." --Alexis Coe, "In Robert Duncan in San Francisco, the reader finds himself in the middle of an extended conversation. It is not a linear narrative. At times, it even reads like prose poetry...a portrait of friendship among a group of exceptional writers, and a historical document about gay life at a unique time and place in America. Rumaker's memoir is a valuable addition to the books by and about Black Mountain writers, and on hopes that it engenders further interest in, and study of, their work."--Jim Nawrocki, [Robert Duncan in San Francisco]looks at the intriguing relationship between the famous, their fans and the soon-to-be famous., "In Robert Duncan in San Francisco, the reader finds himself in the middle of an extended conversation. It is not a linear narrative. At times, it even reads like prose poetry...a portrait of friendship among a group of exceptional writers, and a historical document about gay life at a unique time and place in America. Rumaker's memoir is a valuable addition to the books by and about Black Mountain writers, and on hopes that it engenders further interest in, and study of, their work."-Jim Nawrocki, [Robert] Duncan was ahead of his time and his frank homosexuality inspired [author Michael] Rumaker to embrace his own. 'Robert Duncan in San Francisco' stands with books like Christopher Isherwood's 'A Single Man' as important works on gay liberation., "This expanded edition of a local classic is not only a portrait of the S.F. Renaissance poet, but also a glimpse of pre-Stonewall gay life in the late-1950s. Author Michael Rumaker knew Duncan, and he shares the good with the bad, set against legendary North Beach haunts." -Alexis Coe, ... wonderful and exuberant yet Rumaker, outlining his friendship with Duncan and his associations with his crowd... reveals the dark side of San Francisco in the 1950s and 60s., "This is a wonderfully revealing account of a series of life-changing collisions between a young writer (Rumaker), an older writer(Duncan), a still older mentor for both (Charles Olson), a city (San Francisco), and an important era in American literature (the 1950s), when it was being turned upside down by the individuals and their friends. It's also a tender and intelligent account of a young man's coming to grips with being gay in the midst of this upheaval. Much more than memir; it's history."-- Russell Banks "Robert Duncan in San Francisco offers a surprising portrait of a mentor in all his witty, wicked, luminous, and vulnerable complexity. Straddling the lines of memoir and cultural history, Michael Rumaker gives a rare and delightful view of Duncan at home in the gay community while also documenting the struggles of that community in 1950s America." -- Lisa Jarnot , author of Robert Duncan, The Ambassador from Venus "In this fine memoir of his 16 months in San Francisco, Rumaker learns may lessons about being at home with who he is, in what he calls 'Robert's city.'"-- Joanne Kyger "[Robert Duncan in San Francisco] looks at the intriguing relationship between the famous, their fans and the soon-to-be famous."-- San Francisco Chronicle "A harrowing picture of what life was like for a homosexual man in San Francisco before the Castro became the Castro."-- Truthout "This expanded edition of a local classic is not only a portrait of the S.F. Renaissance poet, but also a glimpse of pre-Stonewall gay life in the late-1950s. Author Michael Rumaker knew Duncan, and he shares the good with the bad, set against legendary North Beach haunts."-- SF Weekly " Robert Duncan in San Francisco is a one-of-a-kind glimpse into Duncan's life, written by Michael Rumaker, one of the rare firsthand chroniclers of the pre-Stonewall era of gay culture."-- Bookslut "... an intriguing view of the city during the pre-Stonewall era. Of particular interest are previously unpublished letters between Rumaker and Duncan."-- San Jose Mercury News "[Robert] Duncan was ahead of his time and his frank homosexuality inspired [author Michael] Rumaker to embrace his own. Robert Duncan in San Francisco stands with books like Christopher Isherwood's A Single Man as important works on gay liberation."-- KCET L.A. Letters "... wonderful and exuberant yet Rumaker, outlining his friendship with Duncan and his associations with his crowd... reveals the dark side of San Francisco in the 1950s and 60s."-- Beat Scene Magazine "This is a book that we all should want to read to remind us of from where we came and realize that we would be nowhere if those who came before us did not speak up."-- activist Amos Lassen, This isn't a memoir solely about the physical presence of Robert Duncan. It's also about the presence of his spirit that inspired those in his orbit, many of whom found the courage to add to the literary lake., Robert Duncan in San Francisco is a one-of-a-kind glimpse into Duncan's life, written by Michael Rumaker, one of the rare firsthand chroniclers of the pre-Stonewall era of gay culture., Duncan was witty, wicked, brilliant and complex yet he did not hide who he was or his sexual lifestyle. In this book, which is part memoir and part cultural history, we get a fascinating look at the man and his friends., "This is a wonderfully revealing account of a series of life-changing collisions between a young writer (Rumaker), an older writer (Duncan), a still older mentor for both (Charles Olson), a city (San Francisco), and an important era in American literature (the 1950s), when it was being turned upside down by the individuals and their friends. It's also a tender and intelligent account of a young man's coming to grips with being gay in the midst of this upheaval. Much more than memir; it's history."--Russell Banks "Robert Duncan in San Francisco offers a surprising portrait of a mentor in all his witty, wicked, luminous, and vulnerable complexity. Straddling the lines of memoir and cultural history, Michael Rumaker gives a rare and delightful view of Duncan at home in the gay community while also documenting the struggles of that community in 1950s America."--Lisa Jarnot, author of Robert Duncan, The Ambassador from Venus "In this fine memoir of his 16 months in San Francisco, Rumaker learns may lessons about being at home with who he is, in what he calls 'Robert's city.'"--Joanne Kyger "[Robert Duncan in San Francisco] looks at the intriguing relationship between the famous, their fans and the soon-to-be famous."--San Francisco Chronicle "A harrowing picture of what life was like for a homosexual man in San Francisco before the Castro became the Castro."--Truthout "This expanded edition of a local classic is not only a portrait of the S.F. Renaissance poet, but also a glimpse of pre-Stonewall gay life in the late-1950s. Author Michael Rumaker knew Duncan, and he shares the good with the bad, set against legendary North Beach haunts."--SF Weekly "Robert Duncan in San Francisco is a one-of-a-kind glimpse into Duncan's life, written by Michael Rumaker, one of the rare firsthand chroniclers of the pre-Stonewall era of gay culture."--Bookslut " . . . an intriguing view of the city during the pre-Stonewall era. Of particular interest are previously unpublished letters between Rumaker and Duncan."--San Jose Mercury News "[Robert] Duncan was ahead of his time and his frank homosexuality inspired [author Michael] Rumaker to embrace his own. Robert Duncan in San Francisco stands with books like Christopher Isherwood's A Single Man as important works on gay liberation."--KCET L.A. Letters " . . . wonderful and exuberant yet Rumaker, outlining his friendship with Duncan and his associations with his crowd . . . reveals the dark side of San Francisco in the 1950s and 60s."--Beat Scene Magazine "This is a book that we all should want to read to remind us of from where we came and realize that we would be nowhere if those who came before us did not speak up."--Amos Lassen, activist, ...the book offers an intriguing view of the city during the pre-Stonewall era. Of particular interest are previously unpublished letters between Rumaker and Duncan.