One of the most compelling and sympathetic novels ever to portray the lives of American Communist activists, The Great Midland is a story of love and radical politics set in the years prior to World War II. It was published in 1948, just as cold war hysteria engulfed the United States; the embarrassed publisher subsequently tried to pretend the book didn't exist, and review media and bookstores ignored it. In an introduction written for this edition, Alexander Saxton reveals that he does not regret having been a Communist, even though his political convictions cost him job opportunities. The book vividly depicts the multiracial and multiethnic alliances that developed as Chicago railroad workers struggled to organize and the attempts of those thrown out of work to avoid eviction. A fascinating example of "cross-gendered writing," the novel presents some of its narrative through the complex consciousness of a young, first-generation Polish-American woman, Stephanie Koviak.
