Season of the Witch
Enchantment, Terror, and Deliverance in the City of Love
Free Press · Print & ebook · March 5, 2013
A riveting history of San Francisco’s transformation—from the Summer of Love to the AIDS crisis—told through the lives, struggles, and triumphs that defined an era.
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- Who it’s for
- San Francisco’s volatile decades come into focus through cultural upheaval and lives caught in change.
- Themes
- San Francisco history, Gay rights movement, Political and social change
- Genres
- Western U.S. History, LGBTQ+ History, 20th-Century America
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Start with this bookAbout this book
A riveting history of San Francisco’s transformation—from the Summer of Love to the AIDS crisis—told through the lives, struggles, and triumphs that defined an era. From the founder of Salon comes a San Francisco Chronicle bestseller that captures one of America’s most extraordinary cities at its most volatile and visionary.
Continue reading
In Season of the Witch, David Talbot chronicles the cultural and political evolution of San Francisco from the late 1960s through the early 1980s—a period of upheaval, idealism, and rebirth. Against the backdrop of protests, assassinations, and radical change, the city emerges as a microcosm of the nation’s own growing pains. Through a sweeping narrative rich with unforgettable figures—Harvey Milk, Janis Joplin, Jim Jones, Bill Walsh, Dianne Feinstein, and more—Talbot reveals how San Francisco transformed from a haven for dreamers and outcasts into a symbol of modern American progress. From the psychedelic haze of Haight-Ashbury to the violence of Jonestown and the hope of the gay rights movement, this is the story of a city that lost its innocence and found its soul. Both gripping and deeply human, Season of the Witch is a masterwork of narrative history—an essential chronicle of rebellion, tragedy, and triumph that reshaped the City by the Bay.
A City in Flux
San Francisco’s volatile decades come into focus through cultural upheaval and lives caught in change.
Come here for
- City history where idealism, politics, and cultural change collide
- A broad era made intimate through the people who shaped it
Expect
- Layered narrative history spanning the late 1960s to early 1980s
- A serious, human account of upheaval, tragedy, and renewal
Where it sits
| Western U.S. History | 89% |
|---|---|
| LGBTQ+ History | 39% |
| 20th-Century America | 36% |
Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.
Publisher categories
- Biography & Memoir
- 20th-Century America
- Social History
- Authors
- David Talbot
- Publisher
- Free Press
- Published
- March 5, 2013
- Format
- Print & ebook
- Theme
- San Francisco history · Gay rights movement · Political and social change
- Reading lane
- Biography & Memoir