This was an excellent, well researched history of sexuality in the US, from colonial times to nearly the present. D'Emilio and Freedman were a good collaborative team, and they presented what seems to be an unbiased version of sexual history. There was a great deal of information about gay and lesbian history that is not usually available. There was less information about transgender history, but what they had was informative. I was reading this for my masters degree final project, and I'm glad I spent the time to do so.

This was a very useful volume on sexuality in America that digs up a number of vital facts (it's particularly good on slavery and much of the casual infidelity that was accepted in seemingly Puritanical times, et al.). The endnotes are rich and useful for those of us who tend to be research junkies. Even so, the book feels a bit too general for something that attempts an ambitious and definitive approach to a vast and fascinating topic.

Great outlay of sexual history in America and how it influenced politics and lifestyle in general. It's time for them to research the next 20 years into this new age of sex taboos beyond the 1980s and early 1990s as we've come a long way since then. Albeit, some of the motifs of sex from earlier eras covered in the book seem to still exist today as much as we've moved into an era more welcoming of sexual freedom. I'd be intetested to see what new ideas come to light in another updated copy that's more than a shallow dive of an 'Afterword'.

A very thorough historical assessment of sexuality in what can be known about practice and the view of sexuality in American culture from the beginnings of colonization to the present day.

The author does not fall into the trap of considering any type of movement or expectation as a given, as if views and perspectives about sexuality are heading toward a particular end. He assesses changes and reactions to changes; moments of "liberation," and moments of "withdrawal." And yet there is a general trajectory toward greater understanding and a higher social profile of sexuality and its practices over time.

The author also does well at looking at the various attitudes which existed among different classes and ethnic groups while not neglecting the overall picture that at least a few in America wanted to present about what appropriate sexuality looked like.

Fully researched and documented and a useful resource if one is interested in understanding the various contours of the views and arguments regarding human sexuality in American culture.

Should be required reading for anyone interested in human sexuality. Really challenged some misconceptions.

A thorough overview of the main trends in America's tortured ideas about s*e*x*---not so much the down & dirty but concepts of gender, permissiveness, gaydom, and youth. As with most histories than span several centuries, the narrative goes broad rather than deep; occasionally you sense some repetition of ideas, which is inevitable, I suppose. Yet I found the final section on the 20th century, "The Rise and Fall fo Sexual Liberalism," fascinating. There's a great section on Margaret Sanger, the mother of modern birth control, and her (and her husband's) battles with Anthony Comstock, one of the most famous blue meanies of all time. I also liked how---unlike VH-1's current documentary, Sex: The Revolution, this study doesn't go gaga congratulating baby-boomers for breaking taboos of virginity and monogamy in the 60s. Instead, a lot of the hypocrises of that revolution are pointed out---including the predatory opportunism it encouraged among supposedly enlightened white progressive men. The book is best read in short stretches---it's too much to assimilate at once.

The chronological span of this book is remarkable, beginning the study in Colonial America and bringing it to our contemporary culture in the recent past (2010s). This survey traces changes in perception and expression of American sexuality, as it relates to changes in politics, economy, and family structures. A strength of the book is the authors' attention to the shifting dynamics of feminine sexual politics, wherein women went from being denied their sexuality toward the sexual objectification of the female body, and ironically with the greater acceptance of birth control the loss of their social right to define their sexual life. Less strong is the book's explication of *why* change in sexuality took place when and how it did.

Not my field, but I can see why this is a classic of the field; it seems like it would be a good reference if you ever need to know anything about sexuality in America.

I read this book for class, there was a lot of learning done. I was just bored by it at times. But if you are interested in learning about the history of sexuality and gender and how that intersects with race then you should definitely read this book.

I've read most of this in excerpts, but I should sit and redo it all of a piece.

I recognize how difficult it could be to write a book about sexuality and not have it seem lurid or sensational. Unfortunately, this book seems too determined to let everyone know it is a scholarly text, and the prose is overly dry and formal. in some places, it feels more like a college paper that ballooned into a book, with many chapters starting with a "this is what this chapter will cover" beginning and ending with a "this is what this chapter has covered" conclusion. There is some fascinating but of data here along with some well documented accounts of sexuality hundreds of years ago, but it's something of a slog to get through.

Really enjoyed 19th century part, but the whole book was a good survey.