On the Home Front: My Mother's Story of Everyday American Life from Prohibition Through WW II

by Mary Jo Clark, Jack Clark

On the Home Front - A Mother's Story of Everyday American Life from Prohibition through World War II (02) by Clark, Mary Jo - Clark, Jack [Paperback (2002)]

Genres: History

240 pages, Paperback

First published March 26, 2002

Reviews

[Deborah Sowery-Quinn · Rating 3 out of 5]

The small essays in this book are related by Mary Jo Clark, born in 1914, to her son and tell of her life. It was quite interesting and don't many of us wish we could have these memories of our parents written down somewhere?

[Angie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charming

[Arlene · Rating 2 out of 5]

This collection of homespun stories told by Mary Jo Clark to her son, Jack Clark, needs to be presented in an orderly, perhaps chronological order to avoid a continuous state of confusion for the reader. Mary Jo Clark introduces us to many people in her life, mostly relatives, and some neighbors, friends and co-workers -- it is difficult to tell who belongs to whom. The family tree included at the end should be handy as a quick reference and should be located at the beginning of the book.
That aside, this was truly a story of "everyday American life" in Chicago in the 20's through the 50's. To today's young generation, here are some questions for you to answer about those who lived in the first half of the previous century: How did they keep in touch without mobile phones? How did they get messages to each other when they were traveling cross-country? Why would they have collected ration tickets for special occasions? How many years of school were required? What kinds of outside-the-home jobs did women have?
Find answers to these questions and others in these stories which begin in the 1920's when Mary Jo Clark had her first memories of growing up in Chicago.

[Jane · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to like this book more, because it's a labor of love. The author, Jack Clark, recorded the stories his mother used to tell him, basically verbatim, without editing or expansion.

Unfortunately, they really needed editing and expansion. For someone who didn't live in the 40's or know this family, a lot of the context is lost. An example is the story "They Didn't Have Married Women at Sears," in which a woman is fired after her wedding. But I wanted to know why: was Sears trying to establish a fun, flirty atmosphere? Or did they believe that married women didn't need, or shouldn't have, jobs?

You can get interesting information from this book, but it raises a lot of questions it doesn't answer.

[Kimberley Moller]

So far, it is as if I was listening to my parents tell the stories of their youth.

The stories are told in the "first person" in a straightforward way. The woman tells how she dealt with her family, finding employment (not always easy and especially for a woman) and the events taking place in the world, notably The Great Depression and World War II in a clear and practical way. It is good to remember that our parents and grandparents had many, many dilemmas growing up and then raising families in those difficult times. They perservered and succeeded in putting together decent lives in spite of all the challenges.

[Stacy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a fun, chatty book and a fast read. It is a snapshot of a generation and a time period but also of the large family Irish Catholic experience.