The Forgotten Man: A New History of the Great Depression | Amity Shlaes

The Forgotten Man: A New History of the Great Depression | Amity Shlaes | Honest treatment of the era

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The Forgotten Man:...

	The Forgotten Man: A New History of the Great Depression Amity Shlaes HarperCollins, 2007 - 480 pages average customer review:based on 121 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Fantastic Insight into the Great Depression

Amity Shlaes' the Forgotten Man is easily the most fascinating look back at the Great Depression I have ever read. The book is a breeze to read and serves as a refreshing look at the well intentioned policies that help prolong and strengthen the severity of the depression. The book starts in the twenties and reevaluates the myth of the "reckless twenties" that became the embodiment of the thirties propaganda. The center of the economic policy of that period was Treasury Secretary Andrew Mellon who served the post for three presidents. The twenties were a boom period for business, much like this decade and the nineties.
President Coolidge's pro-business policies fueled the economic growth of that period. The immensely popular Coolidge decided not to seek a third term and was replaced by Herbert Hoover. Hoover's idea of economics were at odds with Mellon and the previous administration and when the stock market finally corrected in 1929 after inflated growth the President did everything wrong. Hoover raised taxes, tariffs, interest rates and turned a normal recession into the Great Depression.

Political change was inevitable in 1932 and once Roosevelt became President the poor economic policies continued. It's easy to point the blame on Roosevelt, but I'm not sure there was any rational alternative. The Republicans at the time didn't have any better ideas. They were far too prone to support the kind of isolationist policies that were helping compound the problem. The only decent candidate to run against Roosevelt was Wendell Willkie who ran in 1940. By that time the war was the number one issue and there's no doubt that Roosevelt was a tremendous leader.

President Roosevelt's administration also spent a great deal of time going after businesses and Wall Street. This war against the private sector ultimately made the Depression worse as well, eventually leading to Black Tuesday in 1938. The administration's overzealous attack on Wall Street quelled investment and stopped growth. One example of the cluelessness of the administration was the price of Gold. When FDR was asked why he had sat the price of gold to twenty-one cents he replied "it's a lucky number, because it's three times seven." This kind of daily meddling wasn't uncommon and is an amazing insight into why the Depression is the greatest government blunder in our nation's history.

Despite the gloom of the period the book is an inspirational look at the truly "forgotten men and women" of the depression. These heroes overcame one of the most difficult periods in our history despite the incompetence of government intervention. For too long people have debated why the Great Depression happened and ignored why it lasted so long. The answer to the last question is the answer to both. The differences between Hoover and Roosevelt were slight; however, Roosevelt helped calm the public. Ultimately the start of World War II ended the Depression and the anti-business and anti-trade policies of the thirties faded after 1940. It's important for Americans to remember the mistakes made by the government during that period because they're too easy to make again. On the Right, Isolationism in trade and in immigration policy is damaging. On the Left anti-big business and class warfare are equally disturbing. The Forgotten Man is a stark reminder of how both out dated ideologies got it wrong.

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Honest treatment of the era

This is the book that I had been hoping that someone would write. I had always been suspicious of the actual impact of Roosevelt's New Deal, but everything I had ever read in school made it sound like the man singlehandedly pulled this country out of the depression. Such extensive government interference in the affairs of the private sector always backfires, but the New Deal, according to most textbooks, was an exception. Amity Shlaes tells the true story, and does so without attacking or name-calling. She simply tells of the people involved, what they believed, and what they did; letting the history speak for itself. In all reality, the New Deal (and Hoover's attempts to correct the economy), turned what should have been a simple bottoming-out and reevaluation of assets into a massive depression that lasted for more than a decade during which as many as 3 out of 10 people were unemployed.

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Still paying for FDR's economic policies.

Great history of the depression and the people who influenced FDR. Miss Shlais delivers a great narrative and the timing of the book is perfect, as big government tries to socialize America as they did in the 1930's.

Great book

One of the best books I read last year...Not being of that era, after reading this, I have to wonder why FDR is put on such a high pedestal? More than 10 years of 15+% unemployment while he fiddled with the economy? One of the striking visuals is FDR sitting up in bed in the morning and choosing the price of gold for the day...

Best book I have read in years

I have been a stockbroker for 30 years and continually read Economic History books. While I was aware of the fallacies of the educational system's presentation of FDR's Depression, this book gets into the thought processes and manipulations behind the scenes. The comparables to today's economic crisis and Government intervention are just too real.

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