Depression Books

Mr. Miller has a teriffic sense for being honest and getting right to the medical point. I appreciate his way of breaking-down the information into subchapters that is easily understood. A great tool in observing the depressive behaviors in children.

There always seems a new way of looking at the Farm Security Administration photos of the Depression. I've already got `Plain Pictures of Plain Doctoring: Vernacular Expression in New Deal Medicine and Photography' (MIT 1985) and `An American Journey: Images of Railroading During the Depression' (Hot Box Press 2000) and this excellent book is the first to show dozens of great photos of children (and teenagers).

The author's explain in the intro that at the nadir of the Depression about a quarter of the workforce were unemployed and because no child labor laws had been passed this huge number included some children, especially in agriculture. Most of the photos in this book show children in a rural setting, where it was expected that they would help their parents increase the family income.

Sixteen of the FSA photographers work is included and the author's have searched for photos that are seldom or have never been published before and this is one reason I liked the book, another is the large format landscape size. All the images have a short caption, date, photographer's name and Library of Congress negative file number. There are a couple of slightly annoying production points: the lack of page numbers, even though there is a contents page with a page number for each of the seven chapters and the ten pages of introduction are numbered but with roman numerals.

Fortunately not all the photos show hard times and despair, one chapter, called Playing, shows kids having fun, another, Living, has a 1940 Marion Post Wolcott shot of five laughing teenagers folding newspapers on a front lawn in Natchitoches, Louisiana. As you would expect though most of the rest of these sensitively taken photos do show children just having to make do in those extraordinary years.

If you collect books of FSA output or just want to see some great descriptive photos of the past `Children of the Depression' is well worth owning. Another book on the same subject (and written for the younger market) is 'Children of the Great Depression' (ISBN 0618446303) which uses FSA photos to back up the text.

***FOR AN INSIDE LOOK click 'customer images' under the cover.

I thought this was an excellent introduction to the Depression years for younger readers. Russell Freedman writes in a straightforward style and nicely avoids contractions ('did not' instead of 'didn't') popping up throughout his text. There are two stories in these pages, the Depression and life in the Thirties and the same years as they relate to children, so there are chapters devoted to 'In and out of school', 'Kids at work' and 'Boxcar kids' for example.

What really makes the book come alive for me are the excellent photos, all with captions including the date and photographer. Virtually all of them are from the now famous FSA files in the Library of Congress. Russell Lee, Dorothea Lange, Arthur Rothstein and Ben Shahn have the most and they perfectly work with the text. As well as great photos the design of the book is simple and elegant with the photos printed in a sepia green, there is a bibliography and index.

Another worthwhile childrens book about the same period is 'Welcome to Kit's world: 1934. Growing up during America's Great Depression' (ISBN 158485359X) beautifully designed with the story told as extended captions to the hundreds of photos and period graphics. This title is really aimed at young girls.

For a photobook of FSA children images have a look at 'Children of the Depression (ISBN 0253340314) a large format, one photo to a page book that probably has the best of what is available from the files. This book is mentioned in the bibliography of 'Children of the Great Depression'

All three books explore the lives of children in hard times with sympathetic words and powerful pictures.

***FOR AN INSIDE LOOK click 'customer images' under the cover.

In Susan Bartoletti's The Christmas Promise, a young girl and her poor father have little to share on Christmas, but they have their love and trust, even when the authorities threaten them for their wayward lifestyle. David Christiana's captivating and sensitive drawings showcase this very fine story of family Christmas spirit.

Beautifully written. In two or three pages, you'll be used to the offbeat style and feel the rhythm of the street. This is an intimate story of a low-level pickpocket gang, and the intimate story of a threesome with complicated relationships to one another. Akler perfectly captures the gritty 30s streets and a gravely newspaper reporter on the city beat. He accurately portrays the choreography of pickpocketry; I know, I wrote a book on pickpockets and street scams. But what I enjoy and admire most about this unusual book is the author's creative use of language. Delightful.

Jack Perry's book of memoirs, "Clarion Chronicles", is a treasure. It's a warm-hearted, often poignant, and funny look at a vanished, crucial age in America, when the Depression made for a powerful, bittersweet backdrop to childhood and coming of age in the heartland. Perry, an Iowa-born playwright who turned to writing essays and short stories during his later years, has a natural ear for dialogue, and a wonderful gift for language and the art of storytelling. I read these pieces when they were first published in the author's local newpaper, the Daily Hampshire Gazette in Northampton, Mass., and someone finally had the good sense to compile and collect these gem-like stories in one place. Terrific photos of the artist as a young man, and of small-town life in the '20's and '30's, as well. Highly recommended reading.

Since diagnosed with bipolar disorder, I've read many books concerning this disease. This book was extremely helpful in getting me to understand my condition and it showed me a few preventive techniques that have worked. I am not cured, but Ido believe that this book has helped me in a way that no other book has, and for that I am grateful.

The best and most realistic treatment of the topic of codependency I have ever read . The author is exceptionly well qualified. I highly recommend the book.

This work is certainly the most useful and comprehensive work on cognitive vulnerability available. It will be useful to both researchers and clinicians with a research background. The book covers the fundamentals of cognitive theory, then proceeds to an exhaustive summary of the research and findings on the cognitive dimensions of depression, cognitive predictors of depression, different types of causal traits and, appropriately, methodological problems in cognitive research on depression. Certainly not a self-help book, but extremely useful for diligent and evidence-based therapists who wish to turn its information into useful interventions.

This is a thorough how-to book on short-term cognitive-behavioral treatment of depression over eight sessions. This book is to be used by a mental health professional in treating a patient with psychotherapy.