The Great Depression: America in the 1930s

by T.H. Watkins

A companion volume to the fall PBS series chronicles the devastation caused by the nation's most serious economic upheaval, offering parallels with America's present economic woes. By the author of Righteous Pilgrim. TV tie-in. 35,000 first printing. $35,000 ad/promo.

Genres: History, American History, Nonfiction, Politics

375 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1993

Reviews

[Jill H. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a companion volume to the PBS series on the Great Depression and is quite well done. Even if you have seen the series, the book is still worth reading. It tells the reader in the introductory chapters exactly how the Depression came about, why the stock market tanked so dramatically, and why so many banks failed. Although much of that material is well known to those interested in that particular period of US history, there are some additional facts that offer an even more complete picture of the times.

The rest of the volume concentrates on the New Deal and how federal programs affected the progress toward recovery with special foci on African Americans and the farmers of the Dust Bowl. Each program instituted by FDR and his advisors is presented in detail and this is where the book sometimes slows down to a crawl. There is almost too much information to digest which is not surprising since so many new and innovative activities were being implemented during the 1930s; however it is a scholarly work that takes some concentration. Recommended.

[Ann Otto · Rating 5 out of 5]

In looking for a book with a good summary of the Great Depression I passed up some that were too academic or dwelt too much on the culture and not facts. This book, a companion volume to a 1990s public television series, is an interesting and factual resource. It includes more than 150 images that validate the saying "a picture is worth a thousand words."

[Tommy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting book ... I read it mainly for research for the play I'm writing, which takes place in this period. The photographs are perhaps the best part.

[Jeff · Rating 3 out of 5]

Packed with information, Watkins' short book was at times unexciting, dense with names and numbers, but did a great job of covering the decade--from farm surpluses to labor strife, economic panics to racism, women's rights to Martian landings. It was bogged down in places with names the author assumed I would already know but I mostly did not, and was insistent on presenting written song verses from time to time--perhaps more relevant when the book is used as a companion to its TV series counterpart, but increasingly annoying without being able to hear the songs. But in the end, I learned a lot about the turbulent thirties, and several myths were laid to rest. Organized labor was given the most attention throughout, which was unexpected, as the origins of major labor struggles reached back at least as far as the Gilded Age, 60-70 years earlier. This was a nice supplement to my presidential biography journey, as Herbert Hoover and Franklin Roosevelt were covered in detail, while past presidents Wilson, Harding, and Coolidge were mentioned, and the era saw the rise of future presidents including Truman, Johnson, and Ford. A textbook-like read, but not short of great facts and stories.

[Catherine Richmond]

The most frightening thing isn't that the Great Depression happened. It's that it's happening again - tariffs, America first, speculation, loosening of financial regulations, anti-immigration, deportation, anti-Semitism, environmental crisis, fear. I hope we can turn this country around.

[Jasmine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just quickly browsed through this book while studying the Great Depression in US History... Not a bad reinforcement for what I was learning.

[Cole Lewis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cole Lewis
Mrs. St. Clair
English 10
14 May 2017
The Great Depression
The book The Great Depression by T.H. Watkins very accurately describes one of the worst time periods in american history. It made the history come to life and expressed the importance of this time period in relation to history. I read this book because I am very interested in this time period and now very interested in the stock market and this book perfectly explained both to me. I at first thought it would be a very boring dragged out book but then came to realize it always kept me intrigued and I never wanted to put it down. It was a very sad book, as you could probably infer from it being about one of the worst time periods in US history, just to think about the poor families and people that had to live through that just is awful, but overall a very well written and well mapped book in my opinion. Most families at the time were farmers and that didn't go over well, “The impact of this relentless siege of disaster cannot easily be exaggerated. Agriculture not only was the linchpin of the American economy in the monetary value of what it grew and nurtured” (Watkins 189). This part of the book talked about the Dust Bowl and its impacts upon society. What I would like to know and or research more about is the type of drought that caused this disaster among the states. What was the patterns like and how did effect each individual county? I recommend this book to any and all history buffs. I feel like the average person should read this book as well just to realize what they had to go through and to get a sense of our history as a whole.

[Dennis · Rating 4 out of 5]

While the author uses an abundance of statistics, they do help in understanding the times and how they compare to previous times. Some, including myself, didn't really quite understand not the depth of the Great Depression, but the incredible measures to try and bring the country out of it. And then throw in the Dust Bowl for great measure. Oh and don't forget the activity of socialism and Communism and their incursions into labor unions. Labor was struggling to be heard and treated fairly and these ideologies came into play to help the worker. Unfortunately they offered little help in the long run. It was a violent time as labor unions struck for better wages and conditions. President Roosevelt devised the New Deal and it did effectively provide employment, but its sheer size and scope made it difficult to manage. And elements of it ran amok of the Constitution. And here was a conservative Supreme Court that Roosevelt came at logger heads with. It is an interesting book that I would recommend to those who want to better understand that time in our history. It clearly puts today in to perspective. Some say we have safeguards in place to avoid another Great Depression. I wonder with an overhanging debt exceeding $31 trillion whether that is really true. The bill eventually comes due.

[Matt Eisen]

Decent account of the Great Depression and a survey of the labor movements during the 30s. Make it clear that the decade was one of social unrest. Does not spend too much time on the new deal legislation other than public works, labor, and social security. Predominately focused on labor activism.

Argues WW2 was really the factor that ended the great expression and provided the country the stimulus it needed as the new deal started to fall apart in 1938/1939.

Provided a great account of the dynamics leading up to FDR election in 1932. Fantastic account of the bonus army and Hoover’s missteps.

[Fran Severn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting survey of life in the Depression era. Not just the breadlines, but the life in factory towns and the labor disputes and violence as workers tried to survive and were put down by management and soldiers and police. The life on the farms before and during the dust bowl are also vividly shown.

[Codepoetz · Rating 3 out of 5]

This academic history book describes life in America during the Great Depression. Honestly, I was hoping to find more information about the macro and micro economics behind the Great Depression, but this is more of a social history. Expect to learn about labor unions, minority rights, and various social justice initiatives.

[Emilie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Informative sketch of an era, but also quite dry in places.

[Dianna Rostad · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyable read with so much color for every day Americans during this difficult time. Would definitely read more of Watkin’s books.

[Kendra Wilde · Rating 3 out of 5]

Historically accurate, but not what I was looking for.

[Mariah Oleszkowicz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good beginning and end. The middle spent SO much time on labor unions and it seemed like more minutia than the rest of the topics. It was a slog. But the pictures and social history were a plus

[Cindy Dyson Eitelman]

Very readable. I always considered that word a cop-out word--it doesn't really tell you anything but it sounds important. Let me start over.

It's written in a comfortable style with plenty of detail to make you feel full but not stuffed. The research is there, but not in-your-face. It's a companion to a documentary, and I would have enjoyed watching it more than reading this. As full of pictures as it is--every three or four pages is a group of picture pages--seeing and hearing the history would have been more enjoyable. But I had the book, so there it was.

It's short, though. More personal stories and first-hand observations would have brought it alive. The story of organized labor in the era was a new one for me, and fascinating, but a little too much "big actor" stories and not quite enough "ordinary Joe" in the account.

That's my impression, anyway. All the same, it's a good length for a starter and leaves you full of jumping-off points.

[J.G. Follansbee · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you're looking for a good overview of one of the most important and complex periods of American history, The Great Depression: America in the 1930s is for you. Watkins attempts to span more than a decade of history that nearly brought American democracy to its knees. He can't hope but skin the surface, but for those unfamiliar with the outlines, this book provides a good foundation to research further.

Even though I'm familiar with the main story, I found nuggets that I was unaware of, particular the history of African-Americans attempting to pull themselves out of the semi-slavery in the South, and how those efforts fed into the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 60s.

[Janet · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm actually re-reading this book as part of an attempt to reconcile my beliefs about the 1930s Depression and New Deal to today's economic situation.

Unfortunately for my discussions with some other people, my mind has not been changed about the importance of the New Deal to meeting the problems of the Great Depression. Meeting, I said, not mending.

FDR went into office stating clearly that he did not have the answers to the woes facing his country, and those who paint him with ulterior motives from the start, I believe, are misguided.

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

What might be described as an "impressionistic" history of the Great Depression, the true value of T.H. Watkins's book is the marvelous photography strewn throughout. The images, alongside "ground-up" stories of what life was like during the 1930s--for farmers, for laborers, for women, for minorities, for "Oakies"--brings the life and times of the Depression to reality. The reader can almost experience being a hobo on a train, a dust bowl family migrating west, a tramp trying to make ends meet by selling apples in New York. Overall, a reasonably good read.

[Lori Kircher · Rating 1 out of 5]

Did not finish. I read half of this for school, but couldn't finish this book. It's just dates and statistics and extremely fucking boring. God, there were times when I had to put this book down, it was that boring. It was so dense a read, that I couldn't comprehend a whole page, I had to reread paragraphs just to understand them. The great depression isn't the problem with this book, it's the writing and the way it's presented. Overall, would not recommend at all, save your money, get this book from the library; unless you are a historian.

[Mike Ventura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very good expository novel and well thought out presentation. Based on the heft of the book, I assumed it was going to be a long read but it was an engrossing and relatively quick read.
Only complaint is against the editor. The placement of picture pages is completely arbitrary. Literally cutting sentences in half with full page photo collages. Completely ruined the flow of ideas. Save the photos for the ends of passage or chapters! Or have one RELATIVE photo in line with the text.

[Lorenz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very informative and well-written. I love the stories and anecdotes. I love the pictures. My only comment was that the author already assumes that you already know certain things such as the emergency banking act and the CCC and he doesn't try to explain it in detail anymore. Nevertheless, I highly recommend this book!

[Clint · Rating 3 out of 5]

An easily approachable introduction to the subject. The author's priority seems to have been given to the various minority and leftist groups which struggled for a voice during that decade. So much so that, if the capitalist or industrialist class knew any ill effects of the Great Depression, those are not noted here.

[Jayne Cravens · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book transformative regarding my values, my political beliefs and my view of history. I couldn't believe how little I learned about this period of American History -- and I minored in history at university! I look forward to re-reading it soon.

[Tomi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very little new information, but written in an easy-to-read style, with many photos and quotes. The books points out how the New Deal changed America, leading to increasing government intervention in our lives. I see some parallels to today.

[Collette Mcdonough · Rating 2 out of 5]

The issue that I had with this book was that glossed over some important things that happened in the era. If you want to learn about labor issues during the time then this book might be for you. Some interesting chapters. Writing style was lacking.

[Matilda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quick easy read. It makes a good introduction if you don't know much about the 30s and had pictures every six pages or so, a lot of which I'd never seen before. 5 stars for the pictures.

[Timothy Gretler · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lot of information here, very fact heavy, but interesting.

[Devi · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an easily readable history. There is much from the 1920s that is similar to society today.

[Crystal Lynn Kamm · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed learning about the New Deal politics that went into Great Depression rescue. This book was well written, but not well-edited. I don't like seeing typos in my books.