Among Robert C. Cottrell’s books are seminal biographies of the radical journalist I. F. Stone, ACLU icon Roger Nash Baldwin, and Negro League founder Rube Foster. He also authored a book on WWII-era conscientious objectors who served as smokejumpers for the Civilian Public Service, and a dual biography of Hank Greenberg and Jackie Robinson that braided the unholy trinity of anti-Semitism, racism, and baseball. Cottrell’s most recent works include Drugs, Sex, and Rock ‘n Roll: The Rise of America’s 1960s Counterculture and 1968: The Rise and Fall of the New American Revolution (both published by R & L). He is currently completing another retrospective of the 1960s, highlighting the theme of empowerment.

• IntroductionChapter 1: Socialists, Wobblies, and Village RebelsChapter 2: Repression and the Postwar American LeftChapter 3: Heyday of the Old LeftChapter 4: American Radicalism and the Early Cold WarChapter 5: Revolt of the Young (and Others)Chapter 6: The Year of Revolution and BeyondChapter 7: One, Two, Many MovementsChapter 8: Citizen Activism on Many FrontsChapter 9 : Resurgent RadicalismBibliography

Cottrell offers a broad survey of the American Left’s long history from the 1900s to the Trump presidency, arguing that the movement has been most successful when it is independent and democratic. Thousands of organizations and prominent individuals are mentioned—many of which do not make the index—as part of brief descriptions of hundreds of events and manifestos. The book covers a wide range of movements from the Socialist Party to movements fighting for African American, disabled, LGBTQIA+, and women’s rights. Recommended. General readers and undergraduates.