Wolf Girls at Vassar: Lesbian and Gay Experiences, 1930-1990

This volume too often reads like what it started as: a mailbag from someone else's alumni magazine. In Vassar's alumni quarterly, MacKay called for reminiscences of lesbian and gay students (the all-women's school went coed in the '70s), and the responses of 41 alums are compiled here. But the book will leave most readers feeling like strangers at a reunion, not knowing the buildings, the faculty, the gossip or the jokes. As might be expected from such a well-schooled group, the book is not devoid of insights. Indeed, there are many poignant moments, such as Beva Eastman's recollection of a teacher's failure to understand a paper she wrote drawing on her experiences as the child of an alcoholic. Too much of the book, however, is a repetitive litany of coming-out stories, tales of persecution by the university administration during the '50s and '60s, and recounting of first loves. As a sketchy oral history of the period, the book has some merit, but MacKay makes no effort to contextualize the offerings here. As a result, this book does a real disservice to a topic that is worthy of serious treatment. Freelance editor MacKay is a Vassar alumna.

I wrote one of the stories in this book so I'm biased. In spite of that, I think everyone who knows someone going through the turmoil of dealing with coming out should read this book or one like it. It is human and tells real stories that people can relate to.