Nan Alamilla Boyd is professor of women and gender studies, San Francisco State University and author of Wide Open Town: A History of Queer San Francisco to 1965. Horacio N. Roque Ramírez is associate professor of Chicana and Chicano Studies, University of California, Santa Barbara and author of the forthcoming Queer Latino San Francisco: An Oral History, 1960s-1990s.

• Introduction: Close Encounters: The Body and Knowledge in Queer Oral History ; by Horacio N. Roque Ramirez and Nan Alamilla Boyd ; Part 1: Silence ; Chapter 1: Sex, 'Silence,' and Audiotape: Listening for Female Same-Sex Desire in Cuba ; by Carrie Hamilton ; Oral history by Carrie Hamilton with "Laura," Havana, Cuba, 2005-2007 ; Chapter 2: Remembering Provincetown: Oral History and Narrativity at Land's End ; by Karen Krahulik ; Oral history by Karen Krahulik with Marguerite Beata Cook, Provincetown, Massachusetts, January 22, 1997 ; Chapter 3: Queer Family Stories: Learning from Oral Histories with Lesbian Mothers and Gay Fathers from the Pre-Stonewall Era ; by Daniel Rivers ; Oral history by Daniel Rivers with Vera Clarice Martin, Apache Junction, Arizona, September 2, 2006 ; Chapter 4: Spiraling Desire: Recovering the Lesbian Embodied Self in Oral History Narrative ; by Jeff Friedman ; Oral history by Jeff Friedman with Terry Sendgraff, San Francisco, California, November 12 and 28, and December 6, 1990 ; Part 2: Sex ; Chapter 5: Talking About Sex: Cheryl Gonzales and Rikki Streicher Tell Their Stories ; by Nan Alamilla Boyd ; Oral history by Nan Alamilla Boyd with Cheryl Gonzales, San Francisco, California, February 1, 1992; oral history by Nan Alamilla Boyd with Rikki Streicher, San Francisco, California, January 22, 1992 ; Chapter 6: Private Lives and Public History: On Excavating the Sexual Past in Queer Oral History Practice ; by Jason Ruiz ; Oral history by Jason Ruiz with Charles W. Paul Larsen, Columbia Heights, Minneapolis, Minnesota, October 16, 2004 ; Chapter 7: Gender, Desire, and Feminism: A Conversation between Dorothy Allison and Carmen Vazquez ; by Kelly Anderson ; Oral history by Kelly Anderson with Dorothy Allison and Carmen Vazquez, San Francisco, California, November 19, 2007 ; Part 3: Friendship ; Chapter 8: Friendship, Institutions, Oral History ; by Michael David Franklin ; Oral history interview by Michael David Franklin and Dorthe Troeften with Carol, Minneapolis, Minnesota, June 24, 2005 ; Chapter 9: Gay Teachers and Students, Oral History and Queer Kinship ; by Daniel Marshall ; Oral history by Daniel Marshall with Gary Jaynes and Graham Carbery, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, August 6, 2008 ; Chapter 10: Sharing Queer Authorities: Collaborating for Transgender Latina and Gay Latino Historical Meanings ; Horacio N. Roque Ramirez ; Oral history by Horacio N. Roque Ramirez with Alberta Nevaeres (aka "Teresita la Campesina"), San Francisco, California, April 27, 1996 ; Part 4: Politics ; Chapter 11: Dancing with Stella, Los Angeles Daughters of Bilitis Pioneer ; Marcia M. Gallo ; Oral history by Marcia Gallo with Stella Rush, Los Angeles, California, ; March 15 and 19, May 2, May 21 and 22, November 17, 2002 ; Chapter 12: "You Could Argue That They Control Power": Politics and Interviewing across Sexualities ; by Martin Meeker ; Oral history by Martin Meeker with Quentin Kopp, San Mateo, California, April 16 and 17, 2007 ; Chapter 13: Don't Ask: Discussing Sexuality in the American Military and the Media ; by Steve Estes ; Oral history by Steve Estes with Brian Hughes, Washington D.C., January 25, 2005 ; Chapter 14: Thanks for the Memories: A Narrator Asks an Oral Historian for Validation ; by Eric C. Wat ; Oral history by Eric Wat with Ernest Wada, Los Angeles, California, December 4, 1997 ; Afterword: "If I Knew Then..." ; John D'Emilio ; Contributors ; Index

Students of the LGBTQ movement will find the excerpts thought provoking. Oral historians and researchers who use oral history will profit from reading the excellent commentaries. These narratives offer pertinent insights that illustrate how perceptive scholars glean additional information from interviews.