Since Yesterday

The 1930s in America

By: Frederick Lewis Allen

Narrated by: Christopher Lane

In this panorama, subtitled The 1930s in America, Frederick Lewis Allen combines an eye for the significant trivia of everyday existence with a facility for neatly dissecting the political monoliths of the era. Whether discussing the varieties of bathtub gin or elucidating Keynesian economics, Allen displays, in the words of Edward Weeks of The Atlantic, "a talent for terse and telling resume which is the envy of any historian."©1939 Frederick Lewis Allen (P)1994 Blackstone Audiobooks

Critic reviews

"Mr. Allen's shining service is to recall the things that have blurred equally with those that have stuck in memory. No one else does this sort of thing so well....Somehow it conveys the impression of the American people telling their own story in autobiographical form." (The New York Times)

The 1930's - A Decade With Much to Teach Us

Excellent story covers most of the key events and cultural changes of the decade leading up to WWII. Good narration though audio repeated in spots, and the chapters indicated on the display didn't match up with the audio.

Riveting and Insightful

I thoroughly enjoyed listening to Since Yesterday and it’s predecessor, Only Yesterday. I regret that the two tales have ended and look forward to reading more of Frederick Lewis Allen as well as reading The War of the Worlds from 1938. The only issue I had with this audiobook was the occasional and brief repetition of certain sections. I could easily ignore that problem, especially as I was cleaning and painting while listening to this audiobook.

Great time capsule of life in the great depression

I was recommended this after listing to the libertarian slanted "The Forgotten Man" by Amity Schlaes. I disliked her book immensely as I dislike and distrust any book that cherry-picks facts to try and convice the reader/listener of a certain point.

This book was a breath of fresh air as it was written shortly after the 30's finished, and before the beginning of WW2. As such you get a perspective of a citizen during the 1930's. It doesn't seem to have a drum to beat; presenting ideas without a seeming bent.

The problem is with the recording. The narrator is decent, but the recording was of uneven quality, and would repeat sentences often, around every 15-30 minutes. It is disorienting as I wondered if I have let my mind drift, but I hadn't...and having the repetitions only served to remove me from the narrative. What is stranger is that some repetitions were of differing quality than the first.

I returned this as I couldn't get past the poor quality recording and repetitions. I'll read the book.

1930s AMERICA

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, only if they were history lovers. This book is amazing as far as how much information is in here.

What other book might you compare Since Yesterday to and why?

I'm reading his second book about the 1920s, does that count?

What does Christopher Lane bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

To tell you the truth I wasn't crazy about him. He didn't have any inflection in his voice. He basically sounded like a machine.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Made me think about how people complain today, and if they only knew...

Any additional comments?

FDR, DIDN'T SURPRISE ME 😑

Great Content - Robotic Narration

This is a contemporary history of the 1930's that is quite comprehensive. A great source for information on one of the most important decades of the 20th century.

I'm not impressed with the narration. It is horribly robotic, almost sounding like a computer is reading it. The narrator has no inflection, not life in the narration. It would have been much better if Grover Garner would have read it like the companion volume "Only Yesterday".