The Forgotten Man

The Forgotten Man

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. (June 12)
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User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars Loved it
I read this book off of a recommendation from a national radio personality. I would say it was worth the time and effort to read it. The author’s wording made it hard for me to follow – but I motored through it.

I would recommend it to others. It is not a weekend leisure read – but worth the effort to read and follow.

5 Stars Couldn’t Do It
I tryed to read this book but its not my cup of tea, not even close. I’m really into how Obama is screwing up this country so i figured this book would be great. Bought this book after seeing Glenn Beck talk about it. Maybe i’ll try again in a few years, theres alot to process and if it doesnt all soak in you may be like me and not pick it up again. It is a great book its just a bit over my head still. I tryed reading this at work which might have been my biggest problem, this is the kind of book you need to try to read in a few days without any distractions. A+ book… just too much for me.

5 Stars The Obama Model
Read this and you’ll see most of what’s being done over again from the Great Depression. Read Atlas Shrugged and you will see the rest.

5 Stars Warning: The New Deal is Back!
Everyone should read this to understand how Obama and his mentors are following FDR’s plan to take us farther down the road to socialism than FDR could ever have dreamed. Americans have not yet realized that the New Deal was a failure and are blindly following this new mesiah to destroy the basic frabric of the United States. This book is a blueprint for what is yet to come.

5 Stars History Repeats
Very well researched and written without the excessive uses of statistics that often accompany reviews of the great depression. A balanced review of the few success and the many failures of the New Deal. The parallels with the current Obama administration with it’s anti-business and redistribution policies is striking.

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