Barney Frank: The Story of America's Only Left-Handed, Gay, Jewish Congressman

by Stuart Weisberg

An intimate and detailed biography of one of the nation's most distinctive and effective politicians

Genres: LGBT, Nonfiction, Politics, Biography

584 pages, Hardcover

First published September 30, 2009

Reviews

[Chris Aylott · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've always liked Barney Frank, and I like him even more now. He's smart, he's witty, and he does not suffer fools at all. Author Stuart Weisberg likes him too (he and Frank are old friends), so don't expect anything particularly critical about this biography. Read it for the smart-ass comments and the portrait of seventies and eighties, and you'll do just fine.

The best part is the bare-knuckle Boston politics of the seventies. Weisberg does an excellent job of describing the issues and showing what a small town Boston really was at the time. The book flags a little as Mr. Frank goes to Washington and gets involved in all sorts of policy issues, but Barney's personality is strong enough to carry the more arcane bits. The only thing that is lacking is that Weisberg was wrapping up the book just as the financial industry collapsed. The last chapter is necessarily brief and incomplete, but there's another interesting story to be told in a future edition.

[Jdetrick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Barney Frank is a fascinating man, and when this book deals in quotes, it's often interesting (and to be fair, it is filled with many quotes). Unfortunately, the book itself is written in a rather uninteresting manner, and is a little scattered. Interesting man, but could have been a more interesting book.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is 500 pages of things you want to know about Barney Frank but won't enjoy reading. If you are interested but can't stand the idea of all 500 pages, start on chapter 15, page 327. That's where Barney comes out. Until then, it's a little dry. I wish I had read his memoir instead.

If you just want to love him, read the bottom of page 394.

"...the GOP candidate, who wasn't the smartest person in the district, boasted that he had taken an AIDS test and passed. Barney, in a bemused tone of voice, remarked that it was probably one of the few tests he ever passed. Soto challenged Barney to do the same and publicly reveal the results. Barney with a flair for the rejoinder, fired back that he would do so if Soto agreed to take an IQ test and publicly reveal the results. Later in the debate, when Soto confronted Barney about why he had not served in Vietnam, Barney answered, "Well, I'm glad that you agree with me that gay people should serve in the military,".

The parts on the Clinton Administration- Don't ask don't tell and the impeachment etc were interesting because I hadn't known details as a high school student.

Lastly, they call Barney the "gay Washington monument". Hahahaha!

[Mike Garrity]

Barney Frank is certainly one of the most interesting characters in modern American politics. Stuart Weisberg’s biography is very good. It does a great job of capturing the subject, and it has lots of great detail about how things get done in Washington. Also a great overview of all of the backroom deals that drove Massachusetts politics in the 70’s and 80’s.

[Rose Kelleher]

I'm sure there are researchers to whom this comprehensive reference book detailing every minute of Barney Frank's life has been invaluable. For the rest of us, someone ought to write something a little more entertaining, as you'd expect a book about Barney Frank to be.

[Suzanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Liberal political/banking nerds like myself will really enjoy it.

[John Bohnert · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked Barney Frank before I read this book. Now, I like him even more.