Crash

The stock market crash was only the beginning of America's descent into the Great Depression. This audiobook's chapters detail its causes, remedies, and the people most responsible for both. Narrator Oliver Wyman's slow pacing and selective emphasis allow for easy listening of a story punctuated with contemporaneous quotes and headlines, including a powerful account of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire. Listeners hear the patrician speech of FDR, the compassionate tones of Cabinet Secretary Frances Perkins, the accented English of migrant workers, and the diverse voices of a wide variety of troubled Americans, who illustrate the universality of misery during this period. Wyman authentically delivers the words of blacks targeted for lynching in Alabama, devastated West Virginia coal-mining families, Michigan UAW supporters, and impoverished Floridians working New Deal jobs. L.T. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award � AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine

January 29, 2018
Favreau, in his first book for children, explains Black Tuesday, the 1929 stock market crash, the Great Depression, and the steps the United States government took to try to help its citizens get back on their feet. This detailed yet uncomplicated overview is written in clear, concise language, and Favreau doesn’t shy from some of the more difficult subjects (“After the Crash, white southerners tried to push black people down even further”). He begins by recounting stories of how the stock market crash and subsequent economic depression affected real people—across different socioeconomic levels, ethnicities, genders, and geographical locations—giving readers an understanding of personal hardships and a glimpse into how economics works. He then details the rise of Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the part his wife, Eleanor, played in creating jobs, as well as the role of WWII in the U.S. recovery. Making use of photographs, primary-source documents, and firsthand accounts, Favreau brings an important period of history to life. Ages 10–up. Agent: Tanya McKinnon, McKinnon McIntyre.