© Columbia University Press
The Violet Hour: The Violet Quill and the Making of Gay Culture
Paper, 288 pages,
ISBN: 978-0-231-13051-6
$29.50
/ £20.50
April, 2004
Cloth, 288 pages,
ISBN: 978-0-231-13050-9
$90.00
/ £62.00
"Only a scholarly expert in gay literature and cultural history could produce a book as comprehensive, compelling and informative asThe Violet Hour. Yet Bergman avoids pedantry entirely, making his work as much of a treat to read as any of the best writings of men he is writing about." — Mark Panos, Gay Life
"The Violet Hour by David Bergman explores the aspirations and achievements of the gay writers known collectively as the Violet Quill." — Out Magazine
"Bergman's book is an interesting mix of literary scholarship and personal memoir." — Gene Hayworth, The Independent Gay Writer
"a readable page-turner...a fascinating group biography" — Martha E. Stone, The Gay & Lesbian Review
"It is a notable and worthy contribution to gay history and literary analysis." — Gary L. Atkins, The Journal of American HistorySeattle University
"[Bergman] is extremely well-versed...and his study should prove a rich source." — Arthur L. Little, Jr., American Literature
"A perceptive and heartfelt study." — Sean O’Toole, Journal of the History of Sexuality
"The Violet Hour is a valuable resource and an entertaining read." — Kim Emery, South Atlantic ReviewUniversity of Florida
"An interesting social history that reveals the Violet Quill as emblematic of the trajectory of the gay male elite from dominance—by caste—of gay representation, to devastation by AIDS, to obscurity at the hands of contemporary corporate control of gay imagery. Bergman is particularly provocative in illuminating the various degrees of success to which survivors Picano, Holleran, and White have been able to negotiate both the plague and commodification." — Sarah Schulman, author of Rat Bohemia and People in Trouble
"Nobody but David Bergman could have written this book, which is certain to become the standard reference work for the writings of all the Violet Quill authors. More than this, The Violet Hour brilliantly illuminates the context of all gay writing of the 1970s. It is beautifully written, ingeniously ordered and full of trenchant comment on every page. Bergman is to be hugely congratulated for this perceptive and challenging study. It will inform and strongly influence our view of post-war gay male writing for a long while to come, and confirms its author's pre-eminence among contemporary critics of gay male literature.'" — Richard Canning, author of Gay Fiction Speaks and Hear Us Out: Conversations with Gay Novelists