Freedom's Orator: Mario Savio and the Radical Legacy of the 1960s
"What Cohen's account clearly shows is that the FSM was...notable above all for speaking in ways that made political conversation fresh and meaningful, something that correlated with Savio's own non-sectarian leftism."--Logos"Robert Cohen tells Savio's story with passion and compassion.... it is likely to be the standard reference work about Savio."--Jonah Raskin, San Francisco Chronicle"[Cohen] accomplishes the complex task of interweaving Mario's personal story with that of his political engagements, and deftly ties both to the history of the peace and social justice movements that followed. Among Cohen's many strengths as a biographer is his almost uncanny ability to understand Savio's motivations, to see the goodness of his heart, and to honestly consider the psychological demons Savio worked so hard to overcome...Robert Cohen's biography of Mario Savio is earnest, comprehensive, and written as a compelling narrative that does justice to its subject. For this we can all be profoundly grateful." -- Bettina Aptheker, Tikkun "Mario Savio inspired a generation of young people, and this biography elegantly interweaves the various elements of this complex human being: his gift of speech, the profundity of his thought, his spirituality, his strong aversion to dogma, and above all, his unshakable moral core."--Howard Zinn, author of A People's History of the United States"Superb...Alternately inspiring and heartbreaking, Savio's life story and the text of his speeches combine to provide ample support for Cohen's conclusion: 'Savio's political biography poses a challenge to those who write off the '60s generation's democratic idealism and judge the decade only by its excesses.'"--In These Times"[Cohen] does an admirable job of uncovering the experiences that turned a stuttering Queens, New York altar boy into a formidable orator, and... does a brilliant job of capturing the passion and the power of Savio's rhetorical style."-