A Day in San Francisco

by Dorothy Bryant

The parade on Gay Freedom Day 1980 is witnessed by a middle-aged, politically liberal mother who, during one fateful day, confronts clear evidence that her son is caught up in a liberation movement going wrong.

Genres: Fiction

144 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1982

About the author

Dorothy Bryant was born in San Francisco in 1930, second daughter of Joe and Giuditta Calvetti, both born in Balangero, a factory town near Turin, Italy, and brought to the United States as children. Bryant became the first in her family to graduate from college, and she earned her living teaching (high school and college) until 1976. She began writing in 1960 and has since published a dozen books of fiction and non-fiction. Her plays have been performed in the Bay Area and beyond.

Bryant is known for her mystical, feminist and fantastic novels and plays that traverse the space between the real world and her character's inner psyche or soul. Her book The Kin of Ata are Waiting for You was described by Alice Walker as "One of my favorite books in all the world".

Reviews

[Logan]

the dialogue between frank and clara read like torch song… the final chapter was a departure

[Klr]

A quick read but very emotional for me. I remember this time in SF so well. I like her writing.

[sarah]

This story chronicles a woman's journey to her childhood and once-married home, San Francisco. It's a story of protest, melancholy, and tension, as a mother tousles with her convictions and the reality of her son's lifestyle.

I enjoyed parts of this book, especially as someone who knows the city and is curious about the history behind it. A quick read, I appreciated the formatting of the book's pages that illustrated a story in a local newspaper--very creative and design-forward for a book with an austere cover.

[Laura Siegel]

The wonderful little novel looks at San Francisco's gay life in the early '80's as the main character reflects on her son and amazingly foreshadows the AIDS epidemic.