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Summary
Summary
FDR'S New Deal, which followed the 1929 stock market crash, was a hugely influential moment in the history of the United States, encompassing everything from the arts to finance, labor to legislation, and some think it helped bring the country out of the Great Depression. Here, Tonya Bolden, writing in her trademark accessible style, creates a portrait of a time that changed American history both then and now.
FDR's First 100 Days and how the United States was changed by it then are closely examined, especially now. The 2009 financial situation is eerily mirrored by that of the late 1920s, and this is a perfect book to help teens understand history and its lasting impact on current events.
Author Notes
Tonya Bolden is the author of ten books, including "Strong Men Keep Coming", "The Family Heirloom Cookbook", & "33 Things Every Girl Should Know". She lives in Brooklyn, New York.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (5)
School Library Journal Review
Gr 6-9-Bolden uses the myriad programs of the New Deal, collectively called "alphabet soup" because they were known by their initials or acronyms, as a metaphor to describe how Roosevelt's policies and legislation gave vital nourishment to the American people and created permanent changes in the government and economy. She opens with a discussion of the unprecedented crisis of the Great Depression and Roosevelt's subsequent election, but devotes most of the book to the creation and implementation of New Deal agencies and programs, and includes quotes and primary-source excerpts to show how different segments of the population, such as workers and investors, viewed Roosevelt and his policies. The author views the New Deal positively, but does discuss how it polarized the American people and drew opposition from both the left and the right. The narrative is supplemented by numerous sidebars and facing-page inserts that provide additional information and well-captioned, high-quality reproductions of period photos and artifacts. Bolden's writing style is contemporary, with brief sentences, short paragraphs, and vocabulary that uses slang and abbreviations that may not win adult approval but will appeal to teens. The book is more focused on the New Deal than Edmund Lindop and Margaret J. Goldstein's America in the 1930s (21st Century Bks., 2009), which offers a more comprehensive overview of American life during the decade.-Mary Mueller, Rolla Junior High School, MO (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
Bolden's (George Washington Carver) vivid and well-researched account of America's New Deal comprises detail-packed chapters bursting with acronyms, explanatory sidebars, margins filled with quotations, and b&w photos. The concise, conversational style and sometimes glib tone ("Had Giuseppe Zangara been an ace assassin, FDR would have been Dead Man of the Year") keeps the narrative lively, helping readers make sense of a complex set of issues and policies. The many acronyms (FERA, NRA, RFC, SPA, etc.) often necessitate flipping back for reference, and, as the title suggests, it can be difficult to keep them straight. The book excels at contextualizing FDR's new programs and agencies within the political landscape and in noting how they affected minorities, women, labor, and the arts. Bolden also highlights opposition to New Deal policies. She doesn't skew judgment about the programs' effectiveness, though a concluding half-page chapter notes, "[T]here is consensus that the New Deal did not kick [the Great Depression] out, but that World War II did." An author's note compares FDR's era to today's economic crisis, and a glossary defines terms and acronyms. Ages 12-up. (Jan.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Horn Book Review
From the AAA to the WPA, Franklin Roosevelt set up numerous federal agencies under the New Deal. Bolden's use of so many acronyms and lots of jargon ("As for FDR, he was A-OK") can get confusing, especially since the background information is sketchy. However, readers with more than a passing familiarity of the time period and presidency will be hooked. Timeline. Bib., glos., ind. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
Kirkus Review
Explaining the complexities of Roosevelt's New Deal initiatives and their economic impacts is a daunting task for any writer, but Bolden rises to the occasion with an accessible and thoughtful text that clearly and succinctly explains the agencies and programs that came out of FDR's first 100 days in office. She adeptly explains the controversies and fears New Deal initiatives stirred; Roosevelt was accused of bringing communism, fascism and socialism to America with policies that necessitated unprecedented government intervention and spending. The author explains what historians agree and disagree on as to the effectiveness of the New Deal, asking, "What kind of deal was the New Deal?" and inviting readers to examine their own politics, priorities and ideals to help them decide if the New Deal was a "good deal, raw deal, or a misdeal." Informed readers will easily recognize the parallels between the Great Depression and America's current economic and political climate. The revealing, insightful text is richly illustrated with photographs and archival images and punctuated by contemporary quotes. (chronology, glossary, source notes, bibliography, index) (Nonfiction. 12 up) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
Displaying her usual gift for well-turned phrasing, the prolific Bolden injects drama and immediacy into events that will seem (and are) ancient history to her audience. Retracing the course of New Deal initiatives from the newly elected Roosevelt's famous First Hundred Days of action! action! action! to his creation of the powerful Executive Office of the President in 1939, she presents a coherent account of how FDR and his administration successfully (mostly) battled political, ideological, and legal challenges to create a sweeping recovery agenda. In a move that surprisingly picks up the narrative pace, she positively wallows in the era's infamous alphabet soup not only salting her narrative with government agency abbreviations from the AAA to the WPA but dubbing the First Couple FDR and ER and dropping POTUS, SCOTUS, CPUSA (the Communist Party), and a host of labor union tags into the mix. Generously illustrated with period photos and rounded out with a helpful source list, this lively look back both invites and equips readers to ponder the pros and cons of gumptious government in any era.--Peters, John Copyright 2009 Booklist
