The Forgotten Man: A New History of the Great Depression

Awesome book... I learned a lot about a critical period of our country's history that really shaped much of the policies and the politics and political strategies that we see today. I really recommend this book.

Puts everything I ever learned about FDR in a whole new light. I used to revere FDR as the greatest President this country ever had. I'm amazed on how wrong I was, and I have a BA in History from Rutgers, and consider myself fairly knowledgeable on history.

Offers behind-the-scenes looks at the challenges confronting Hoover and FDR and the choices they made, both good and bad (mostly bad, apparently), that compounded the effects of the 1929 crash and other world events and turned what probably would have been a minor blip into the largest economic downturn of all time. A great history of the Great Depression and its causes.

An effective book that applies the simple cause and effect relationship to the New Deal. Roosevelt, Tugwell, and Lilenthal were overall well-intentioned but misguided. But Shlaes doesn't pull punches where FDR and co. used the depression politically. Mellon, Insull, and Willkie were great Americans who were bulldozed by a master class warfare tactician. Good lessons that would be...more

An effective book that applies the simple cause and effect relationship to the New Deal. Roosevelt, Tugwell, and Lilenthal were overall well-intentioned but misguided. But Shlaes doesn't pull punches where FDR and co. used the depression politically. Mellon, Insull, and Willkie were great Americans who were bulldozed by a master class warfare tactician. Good lessons that would be helpful to heed today, especially for Republicans, who blew what should've been a victory in 1940.   hide

This book teaches you what history has rewritten. We have been told the wrong information for too long about the reason for the great depression. The length of the depression was exacerbated by the changing actions and the heavy and incorrectly prepared government. Government was the problem. Don't let the government be the problem this time. Governemnt should not mess with the...more

This book teaches you what history has rewritten. We have been told the wrong information for too long about the reason for the great depression. The length of the depression was exacerbated by the changing actions and the heavy and incorrectly prepared government. Government was the problem. Don't let the government be the problem this time. Governemnt should not mess with the fundemental laws of contracts and free trade and price determination. Supply nor demand should be set by the government. The faster the government gets out of the way the quicker we will heal. The longer the government mettles in free markets the longer companies are unsure how to invest and grow. I strongly recommend this book.   hide

I would suggest this book as a great example up how FDR prolonged the Depression. It is scary because Obama is following along in his steps.

This book shows how even back in the 20s and 30s unions were created and pushed by politicians purely for the "vote" and not for the good of the worker. I feel like the book was discussing 2009-2010. I guess Obama studied Hoover and FDR because he makes alot of the same moves.

It's so long that I forget parts that relate to what I'm reading now. So advice: read the whole thing at a stint or less than a week. It will be worth it if you want to know how the US organization came about and how what we're going through now is almost identical to the great depression.

This book will be loved by the neo-cons that would love to see Rome burn and call it a "correction" in the building code. The author of the book has a clear disdain for FDR and the New Deal. While there is no doubt that the New Deal ushered in a level of government involvement that was previously unknown, it also saved a lot of people's lives by introduced regulations that were and...more

This book will be loved by the neo-cons that would love to see Rome burn and call it a "correction" in the building code. The author of the book has a clear disdain for FDR and the New Deal. While there is no doubt that the New Deal ushered in a level of government involvement that was previously unknown, it also saved a lot of people's lives by introduced regulations that were and are still needed. Still, it is well researched and it is interesting to see how the other half thinks...   hide