In And Out Of The Ivory Tower The Autobiography Of William L Langer

“Straightforward, relaxed memoirs by the prodigiously industrious and learned Harvard diplomatic historian and head of the Research and Analysis Section of OSS... Fine reading for anyone interested in academic life and in the connections between scholarship and policy in foreign affairs.” — Gaddis Smith, Foreign Affairs “William L. Langer intended this autobiography as an exemplary tale of how a poor boy from an immigrant family made good in America... Langer’s autobiography provides clues to his patriotic identification with the establishment and to the prodigious energy and intelligence that produced his historical works.” — Dorothy Ross, The American Historical Review “[T]his informal, modest, and understated volume will please and inform both those who knew the author personally and those who knew him only through his publications... As a historian, Langer defies categorization... he explored new areas and new techniques for research — regional studies, demography, disease, and psychoanalysis. His autobiography is neither a full description nor critical appraisal of the profession, but it should convey to a younger generation the historian’s search for truth, his pride in craftsmanship, and his sense of social responsibility.” — Richard W. Leopold, The Journal of American History