This breezy narrative comes from the pen of a veteran journalist and economics
reporter. Rather than telling a new story, she tells an old one (scarcely lacking
for historians) in a fresh way. Shlaes brings to the tale an emphasis on economic
realities and consequences, especially when seen from the perspective of monetarist
theory, and a focus on particular individuals and events, both celebrated and
forgotten (at least relatively so). Thus the spotlight plays not only on Andrew
Mellon, Wendell Wilkie and Rexford Tugwell but also on Father Divine and the
Schechter brothers.kosher butcher wholesalers prosecuted by the federal National
Recovery Administration for selling "sick chickens." As befits a former writer
for the Wall Street Journal, Shlaes is sensitive to the dangers of government
intervention in the economy.but also to the danger of the government's not
intervening. In her telling, policymakers of the 1920s weren't so incompetent as
they're often made out to be.everyone in the 1930s was floundering and all made
errors.and WWII, not the New Deal, ended the Depression. This is plausible history,
if not authoritative, novel or deeply analytical. It's also a thoughtful, even-
tempered corrective to too often unbalanced celebrations of FDR and his
administration's pathbreaking policies. 16 pages of b&w photos.

Download File Size:2.97 MB

---