4.0
The Romance of American Communism
ByPublisher Description
Writer and critic Vivian Gornick’s long-unavailable classic exploring how Left politics gave depth and meaning to American life
“Before I knew that I was Jewish or a girl I knew that I was a member of the working class.”
So begins Vivian Gornick’s exploration of how the world of socialists, communists, and progressives in the 1940s and 1950s created a rich, diverse world where ordinary men and women felt their lives connected to a larger human project.
Now back in print after its initial publication in 1977 and with a new introduction by the author, The Romance of American Communism is a landmark work of new journalism, profiling American Communist Party members and fellow travelers as they joined the Party, lived within its orbit, and left in disillusionment and disappointment as Stalin’s crimes became public.
“Before I knew that I was Jewish or a girl I knew that I was a member of the working class.”
So begins Vivian Gornick’s exploration of how the world of socialists, communists, and progressives in the 1940s and 1950s created a rich, diverse world where ordinary men and women felt their lives connected to a larger human project.
Now back in print after its initial publication in 1977 and with a new introduction by the author, The Romance of American Communism is a landmark work of new journalism, profiling American Communist Party members and fellow travelers as they joined the Party, lived within its orbit, and left in disillusionment and disappointment as Stalin’s crimes became public.
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Meet readers like you in the Fable For You feed, designed to build bookish communitiesThe Romance of American Communism Reviews
4.0
Bianca
Created about 1 month agoShare
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“Insightful - made me realize I have a lot more to understand about the history of the US left. This book, even more so than the last Gornick one I read, really makes her limits — especially on spots on race — impossible to ignore. I like her writing, but I like her as a writer/public figure *much* less than I did after reading Fierce Attachments. She is small p political, not big P Political which I name to maybe help inform how to approach this boom (assuming someone is actually reading this review).
Her big point is an obvious, simple one: putting the CP over everything else in one’s life led to all kinds of disaster and unhappiness. That’s not unique to the CP (she doesn’t insinuate that it is). I’d recommend the text though for young 20 year olds who are fervently looking for a cause to fight for but I’d worry they’d read it and take away the wrong message.”
lonelyplanetboy
Created 4 months agoShare
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“This book blew my mind. Gornick handles these oral histories with care, her prose is rich and visual while not backing down from the discomfort and contradictions of these American Communists. Her last chapter where she ties understanding the CPA to understanding of the feminist movement and being able to learn from it helped me clarify what I found so moving about this book. The context, the context, yes, understanding “the old left.” And also—how valuable this context is, from the most beautiful moments of solidarity to the worst things people did to each other—for contemporary activists and thinkers.”
Katie Benmar
Created 5 months agoShare
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Ren
Created 8 months agoShare
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“I loved this book! It gave me so much more knowledge on American Communism especially in pre-WWII days. I really haven't learned as much about the early 1900's American communism so this book really gave a good array of opinions and experiences. Every anecdote and experience was so interesting and genuine in the way communism affect the lives of organizers as well as everyday people. No story was the exact same and hearing of the early days and how much attitudes shifted during the 1950's. Really enjoyed this read 4.5/5”
StaleMilkRadio
Created 12 months agoShare
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About Vivian Gornick
Vivian Gornick is a writer and critic whose work has received two National Book Critics Circle Award nominations and been collected in The Best American Essays 2014. Growing up in the Bronx amongst communists and socialists, Gornick became a legendary writer for Village Voice, chronicling the emergence of the feminist movement in the 1970s. Her works include the memoirs Fierce Attachments (1987) and The Odd Woman and the City (2015) and the classic text on writing, The Situation and the Story.
Other books by Vivian Gornick
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