SOLVED. Woman is transported to a fantasy land by a dragon where everyone only remembers the last ten years. [s]

[Kitty]

i read this sometime around 2000 but i think it might have been published in the late seventies. There is a bit in it about the main character having been a student at Kent State when the shooting happened.

The main character (susanna probably) is a grad student for a history professer when a dragon paperweight suddenly comes to life and transports them to a fantasy land (he's apparantly been there several times)
In this world women have no rights at all, and no one can remember beyond ten years.

I think the two of them had different names in the flantasy land. Also there was a tree that turned people into monsters (not sure i'm remembering that right)

The main group is at war with some invaders.

(view spoiler)[ The whole land turns out to be something the profesor made up that became real and the reason no one remembers past the ten years is that was when they became alive (hide spoiler)]

[Kris]

Kitten, how important are dragons in the fantasy world?

Are the grad student and history professor romantically involved?

What type history does he teach?

[Kitty]

There is just the one dragon. Hes the conduit between worlds.
No in fact she cant really stand him
I think medvil english but not sure

[Kris]

Dragonsword by Gaèl Baudino seems to match your description.

Some Goodreads and Amazon reviewers say, "Dragonsword is actually a time capsule of women's experience of that day. The struggle for equality..." | "It's about a world invented by a bitter, divorced, mysogynistic professor. He needs a successor and his assistant is the one chosen by the dragon--and she's a pacifist who still has nightmares about Kent State."

http://www.worldcat.org/advancedsearch > Keyword: dragon student professor | Subject: fantasy | 1970-2005 | Non-Juvenile | Fiction | Book | English

[Kitty]

That appears to be the right book. Thank you.

[Kris]

You're welcome.

Here's a detailed plot summary of Dragonsword on Wikipedia. It mentions "no one remembers more than ten years back".
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragons... (includes Spoilers)