The Last Deployment: How a Gay, Hammer-Swinging Twentysomething Survived a Year in Iraq (Living Out: Gay and Lesbian Autobiog)
“Lemer writes with clarity, temperance, and an eye for detail. . . . Without ever becoming polemical, the book shows graphically how ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ cruelly affects gay soldiers who play by the rules.”—David Bergman, editor ofGay American Autobiography: Writings from Whitman to Sedaris“An important contribution to this national debate. . . . A book we should have on the president’s desk as soon as possible.”—Tim Miller, author ofBody Blowsand1001 Beds“A well-written, often provocative memoir of the author’s struggle to reconcile military brotherhood with self-acceptance. . . . Regardless of how you feel about the war, this memoir is well worth reading.”—Lambda Literary“This is extremely touching material. Lemer describes the emotional turbulence of being gay in the military, tortured with the strong natural desire to connect with his fellow soldiers yet unable to reveal himself because of his sexuality. There is real pain in that kind of personal concealment, and it permeates this moving, substantive account.”—Bay Area Reporter“This book provides a poignant example of a gay man learning more about his place in the world. Lemer’s fears and joys highlight the humanity associated with being gay in the military, along with complexities of the discriminatory and soon to be ended policy of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.’”—High Plains Reader“Lemer’s is a wonderfully descriptive, wryly humorous, heart-crushing story, and I couldn’t put it down. . . . If you love a soldier, your country, or both,The Last Deploymentis a book you’ll want to tell everybody about.”—The Dallas Voice“A masterful balance of straightforward wartime reporting, anguished self-reflection and a wealth of absurd asides.”—Pittsburgh’s Out