Walt Odets

Walt Odets
Born
Walt Whitman Odets

(1947-02-04) February 4, 1947 (age 77)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Occupations
  • Clinical psychologist
  • writer
ParentClifford Odets (father)
Websitehttps://waltodets.com

Walt Whitman Odets (born February 4, 1947) is an American clinical psychologist and author. He has written about the early development, psychological and social experiences of gay men and their communities. Odets' earlier writing focused on the lives of men living in and surviving the early AIDS epidemic. The spring 1996 issue of Positive Impact Journal called him "an important voice in the AIDS education and prevention arena."[1] Odets's 1995 study, In the Shadow of the Epidemic: Being HIV-Negative in the Age of AIDS, was listed by The New York Times as among the "Notable Books of the Year 1995."[2] Additionally, In the Shadow of the Epidemic was the No. 1 bestselling book purchased by gay men in the late fall of 1995, according to The Advocate,[3] and was confirmed as a "Gay Bestseller of 1995" by the Feminist Bookstore News.[4]

Odets's later work has focused on the psychological aftermath of the epidemic, the early-life experience of stigmatization and adolescent trauma among young gay men, and the conventional idea of "the homosexual" and its influences on gay identities, self-compromise and relationships between men. Published in 2019 by Farrar, Straus & Giroux, Out of the Shadows: Reimagining Gay Men's Lives has been described as "A moving exploration of how gay men construct their identities, fight to be themselves, and live authentically... a necessary, impassioned argument for how and why we must all take hold of our futures." [5][6]

  1. ^ "Why AIDS Education Fails Gay Men". Positive Impact Journal. 3 (2): 1–4. Spring 1996.
  2. ^ Kirp, David L. (December 3, 1995). "The Nightmare of Survival". New York Times Book Review. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
  3. ^ "Best-selling books". The Advocate. Here. December 12, 1995. p. 78. Retrieved April 8, 2017.
  4. ^ "Gay Bestsellers of 1995". Feminist Bookstore News. San Francisco, CA. August 13, 1996.
  5. ^ Odets, Walt. "Out of the Shadows: Reimagining Gay Men's Lives". Macmillan Publishers. Retrieved December 6, 2018.
  6. ^ Odets, Walt. "Out of the Shadows: Reimagining Gay Men's Lives". Penguin Books. Retrieved December 6, 2018.