1932, Scott Martelle
1932, Scott Martelle
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1932
FDR, Hoover, and the Dawn of a New America

Author: Scott Martelle

Narrator: David Stifel

Unabridged: 10 hr 58 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 11/28/2023


Synopsis

At the start of 1932, the nation's worst economic crisis has left one-in-four workers without a job, countless families facing eviction, banks shutting down as desperate depositors withdraw their savings, and growing social and political unrest. Amid this turmoil, a political decision looms that will determine the course of the nation. It's a choice between two men with very different visions of America: Incumbent Republican Herbert Hoover and New York's Democratic Governor Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

Veteran journalist Scott Martelle provides a gripping narrative retelling of that vitally significant year as social and political systems struggled under the weight of the devastating Dust Bowl, economic woes, rising political protests, and growing demand for the repeal of Prohibition. That November, voters overwhelmingly rejected decades of Republican rule and backed Roosevelt and his promise to redefine the role of the federal government while putting the needs of the people ahead of the wishes of the wealthy.

Deftly told, this illuminating work spotlights parallel events from that pivotal year and brings to life figures who made headlines in their time but have been largely forgotten today. Ultimately, it is the story of a nation that, with the help of a leader determined to unite and inspire, took giant steps toward a new America.

About Scott Martelle

Scott Martelle, a veteran journalist and former member of the Los Angeles Times editorial board, is the author of several nonfiction books. His journalism has included presidential campaigns; postwar Kosovo; a wide range of local and regional stories; book and music reviews; longform narrative nonfiction, and opinion pieces on such divisive topics as climate change, immigration, the death penalty, and gun control. His work has appeared in the New York Times, the Washington Post, Sierra magazine, Los Angeles magazine, Orange Coast magazine, and elsewhere.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Brendan

Sometimes you need to stick to what works. 1932 by Scott Martelle is a book where good writing cannot overcome excessive scope. Martelle is telling the story of Hoover vs. FDR and I am pretty sure we all know how that worked out. I found that Martelle's writing style is easy to follow and there are......more

Goodreads review by Mark

Here in 2024, the year 1932 is more than 80 years ago, so more than a generation. There are not that many people left who actually were living then, so Mr. Martelle’s book is a welcome excursion into our recent past. He has elected to focus on mostly a single year to us a snapshot of what was actual......more

Goodreads review by Jeff

1932:  FDR, Hoover, and the Dawn of a New America.  Scott Martelle.  Citadel Press, 2023. 407 pages. Authors use phrases like "Dawn of a New America" and "turning point" in subtitles all the time, but some authors fail to prove their case.  In 1932, Scott Martelle succeeds in laying out evidence that......more

Goodreads review by Arlene

You hear so much about FDR and his presidency and talk about the issues that helped him get there. But not much about how much went down in the year of the election. Between the protest with the farmers and veterans. Plus race killings. It just shows how much the government really knows nothing abou......more

Goodreads review by Rick

Basically a dull book that sheds no new light on 1932. This is a chapter in a larger book on the great depression but doesn't shed any new light on what we already now. Not to mention, it is slow and doesn't keep the reader engrossed. If you know anything about the Great Depression you can pass on t......more