In this fascinating and provocative study of the gay male experience in America, Nimmons, a writer and past president of the New York Lesbian and Gay Community Services Center, boldly challenges the libidinous, body-conscious stereotype of the typical gay American male. With an irreverent, almost conversational tone that belies an embarrassment of statistical riches, Nimmons redefines gay men's contributions to a newly evolving public ethos revolving around the central theme of care and service to the community. Academic studies and the author's own research indicate that gays have the lowest crime rates of any demographic, that they most often choose occupations in the health and public service fields, and that they maintain higher levels of community volunteerism. More interesting, and perhaps more daring, is Nimmons' argument that gays, America's only openly polyandric tribe, may offer constructive new paradigms for the institution of heterosexual marriage now suffering from high divorce rates and the destructive breakup of the family in order to create a happier, more stable environment in which to raise children.
This may well be one of the most important books on gay culture for the new millennium and certainly one of the most daring and original. For all gay studies collections.
-- Jeff Ingram, Newport P.L., OR