The Good Years: From 1900 To The First World War

by Walter Lord

Paperback, 2010

Status

Available

Call number

973.91

Genres

Publication

Kessinger Publishing, LLC (2010), 412 pages

Description

The period between 1900 and the First World War could be called the Confident Years, the Buoyant Years, the Spirited Years, or named after some bright, hopeful color, like the Golden Years. It could be done, but such tags are the invention of pundits, social historians, and professional name coiners. To the many varied people who lived through the era - the men and women who wistfully recall marching for suffrage, rebuilding San Francisco, or cheering wildly for Woodrow Wilson - the age was remembered as the Good Years.It was a time of triumph (the Wright brothers) and of tragedy (the Titanic). Days of wealth (a $200,000 ball) and of poverty (a child in a cotton mill earning $3.54 a week). But through it all ran an exciting thread of boundless confidence and hope. No one ever accused the people of that period of national indifference. It is this spirit of uncontested optimism, along with the pageant of great events, that makes this book such rewarding reading.In gathering his material, Walter Lord pored over letters, diaries, unpublished reminiscences, even Pinkerton reports, filled with fascinating and, until now, unknown detail. He traveled thousands of miles and interviewed the people who lived through the period. He met with individuals who firmly believed they had been given the greatest experience anyone could ever have; they knew and enjoyed the years when there was no limit to what we could and would do. Lord's attention to first-hand sources makes this book vivid and timeless. And Leslie Lenkowsky's new introduction adds contemporary dimension to this classic work.… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member tloeffler

This has been on my shelf for ages, avoided because it was big. That was a really bad idea. I thoroughly enjoyed it. One may remember [[Walter Lord]] from [A Night to Remember] about the Titanic. What he has done in this book is to take the years from 1900 until the start of the First World War,

and tell one great story about a major event that occurred during that year (some years get 2 events). For instance, 1906 is the San Francisco earthquake. 1912 focuses on the Democratic National Convention (with a very short mention of the Titanic; only to show what kind of affect it had on the country). The great thing is that this book was published in 1960, so a majority of his references were interviews with people who were actually there! I just found it a fascinating book, and if you can find a copy, you should read it.

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LibraryThing member Castlelass

Non-fiction series of vignettes, each representing a significant event in the early years of the 20th century. Walter Lord’s vivid narrative explores what life was like in America in a simpler time when people were confident that any challenge could be resolved. The author examines how these

events influenced society as a whole by focusing on its parts, including the Boxer Rebellion, McKinley’s assassination, Theodore Roosevelt’s enforcement of anti-trust, the Wright Brothers’ flying machine, elaborate parties of New York socialites, the San Francisco fire and earthquake, the rise of labor laws, the momentum toward women’s suffrage, the 1907 financial panic and J. Pierpont Morgan’s role of rescuer, Henry Ford’s Model T, Robert Peary’s dash to the North Pole and the controversy over Frederick Cook’s claim of precedence, the 1912 convention that nominated Woodrow Wilson, and the last peaceful summer before World War I.

As in many collections of stories, some will be more to a specific reader’s interest than others, but all are thoroughly researched and distinctively written. Published in 1960, the author interviewed many of the actual participants. These certainly are not all “good years.” Imagine a time before air conditioning, when most people wore heavy woolen clothing, no internet, no movies, no television, even radio was still several years away. I think Lord’s point is that these years were less complicated, when people were optimistic that problems could be easily solved. Unfortunately, World War I shattered the illusions of security and easy answers.

I have always admired Lord’s writing style and his ability to bring history to life, and this book is no exception. Recommended to history buffs or anyone interested in learning more about the major events of the early years of the 20th century in the United States.

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