 |
| No Ordinary Time |
I grew up in that era. When I was a high school student in the mid 50's things were not always as they appeared in the history books. Even at that age I was a lover of books and what I read then is not at all what was really going on.
For example, because of what I read I believed that we had done the right thing for the right people. But at Kearns knee I learned that while we tried to resolve the Jewish issue after the war, it was our own government and its employees that resolved to withhold help when we knew it was badly needed because of anti-semitism. The Nazis took this as permission to carry out some horrible deeds. I felt as angry the day I read that as I would have if I had know at the time.
The actors on that stage were not who I thought they were. The Roosevelts put on a very good show but....
Eleanor Roosevelt has alway been a hero of mine. She seemed almost motherly and perfect in so many ways. That was the way history had painted her. But the real Eleanor emerged on the pages of the book as flawed, frightened, obsessed, a nagging wife and, in the end, brilliant. Even though the Roosevelts did not share a married life, they did share in the responsibilities of the presidency. She was his most trusted eyes on the nation and advisor in that theater.
FDR was an amazing man that led the charge against Hitler while collecting stamps, drinking cocktails everyday and watching movies. His brainchild, the Lend-Lease Program, was born of chaos in a country that did not want to go to war. He did what was necessary by running an end around play with the Republican congress.
He promised that our young men would never be drafted into national service and did exactly that very thing. Because of his kind of leadership, he convince the people that he had no choice. And he probably didn't.
As for rationing, I had to laugh when I discovered that the reason gas was initially rationed was not because we didn't have gas. It was because we didn't have rubber. No gas, less driving, less need for new tires! Genius I thought!
When I was in school we were not told that he was a crippled man suffering the results of polio. In fact, I don't think my parents were entirely aware of the fact when I was young. His leadership style was so laid back and he could live with so much turmoil around him it is amazing what he accomplished. Somehow he knew that the best path would emerge out of all the noise around him.
He was a man with a soft heart, could not fire anyone and remained in love with a woman not his wife until his death. You will find him to be a "momma's boy" and untrustworthy, not unlike politicians of today. Yet, he did what seemed impossible because he made the American people believe that they could do just that. I was awestruck.
Of course this is a ***** book and winner of the Pulitzer Prize. It was a very entertaining read and well worth my time. Even though you may think it might be dry and boring, it was anything but. I will never see that era in the same way ever again. But then it is all good...I needed a good dose of reality. There was nothing in that war that was romantic and the thought that kept crossing my mind was that, given even the smallest change in the way it played out, history could have been very, very different.
Check it out, buy it or borrow it. You will not regret it.
b+
Check it out, buy it or borrow it. You will not regret it.
b+
