DOC A Square Meal: A Culinary History of the Great Depression by Jane Ziegelman; Andrew Coe in History

Review

61 of 64 people found the following review helpful. Depression DiningBy takingadayoffYou might imagine a culinary history of the Great Depression would be a catalog of cheap and skimpy meals; but having read previous works by Jane Ziegelman and Andrew Coe; I knew I'd be in for a social history with all the trimmings.I was not disappointed. A Square Meal chronicles American diets in the early 20th century; tells the history of hoboes in America (and the important differences between hoboes and tramps and bums); touches on the popularization of canned and frozen foods; and gets into the surprising politics of feeding (and not feeding) the unemployed during the Depression.Sprinkled throughout are recipes and photographs and intriguing stories; and what runs just below the surface is that we are not so very far removed from the Thirties. The attitudes toward people using food stamps (which were introduced in that decade) were not charitable -- there was a suspicion in the White House among FDR's cabinet (and perhaps FDR himself) that people accepting handouts would suffer low morale from the experience. Evidently they thought that was a fate worse than actually starving to death; something that happened with grim regularity. But the false economy of letting people starve came back to roost when the Army had to disqualify half of the draftees it examined due to poor health; much of which was directly attributable to poor nutrition.Fascinating social history; highly recommended!(Thanks to HarperCollins and Edelweiss for a digital review copy.)3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. Realities from the DepressionBy Robert J. WilkinsI would recommend that this book be read along with "The Forgotten Man" by Amity Shlaes for insight into life during the Depression. I wasn't aware that even FDR feared that providing welfare assistance would destroy one's motivation to be independent. The topics discussed resonate into today's arguments re welfare. The origin of some common words and phrases in my speech like "kitchenette;" "the greatest thing since sliced bread;" and "school lunches" are explained. There are ample quotes from pertinent articles when the events were unfolding. Also; now I know why my father liked his time in the CCC. Just when the despair of unemployed and starving people gets gets painful to read; the authors insert a recipe from the government's home economists. The authors deftly weave back and forth from poltical history to government nutrition planning. There are good lessons to be learned here.4 of 4 people found the following review helpful. Sad truth; interesting story.By cynthia s.NPR recommended book. I enjoyed reading it and the sad history of food and the unavailability of it during the years that were highlighted in the book. Some of the scenarios in the 1920's about busy family life in the city and turning to prepared meals sounds like 2016.