Thirties

In Happyland, Curtis McManus contends that the "Dirty Thirties," actually began much earlier and were connected only peripherally to the Depression itself.

J.B. Priestley famously described the 'three Englands' he saw in the 1930s; old England, 19th-century England and the new, post-war England. In this book Juliet Gardiner provides a fresh perspective on that restless, uncertain, ambitious decade, bringing the complex experience of 1930s Britain alive.

Renowned journalist Nell Frizzell explores what happens when a woman begins to ask herself: should I have a baby? We have descriptors for many periods of life—adolescence, menopause, mid-life crisis, quarter-life crisis—but there is a period of profound change that many women face, often in their late twenties to early forties, that does not yet have a name. Nell Frizzell is calling this period of flux “the panic years,” and it is often characterized by a preoccupation with one major question: should I have a baby? And from there—do I want a baby? With whom should I have a baby? How will I know when I’m ready? Decisions made during this period suddenly take on more weight, as questions of love, career, friendship, fertility, and family clash together while peers begin the process of coupling and breeding. But this very important process is rarely written or talked about beyond the clichés of the “ticking clock.” Enter Frizzell, our comforting guide, who uses personal stories from her own experiences in the panic years to illuminate the larger social and cultural trends, and gives voice to the uncertainty, confusion, and urgency that tends to characterize this time of life. Frizzell reminds us that we are not alone in this, and encourages us to share our experiences and those of the women around us—as she does with honesty and vulnerability in these pages. Raw and hilarious, The Panic Years is an arm around the shoulder for every woman trying to navigate life’s big decisions against the backdrop of the mother of all questions.

Tenderly, hauntingly, and without fear, the thirteen sections in Thirties chronicle Andrews’ journey through a decade rife with both beauty and brutality. Each song-inspired vignette is further enlivened by thoughtfully curated photos, revealing experiences that are at once both universal and intimate In this visual storytelling companion to her upcoming album release of the same name, Andrews explores the isolation and the joy of motherhood, the loss of a lover and partner, and the experience of growing older in a world that expects you to stay young forever. Thirties resists contemplating the big, loud questions of the world, and rather, invites readers to find rest in knowing and loving themselves.

New Orleans in the Thirties offers a nostalgic view of life in New Orleans half a century ago through photographs and reminiscences. It was a time when Robert Maestri was mayor, the St. Charles streetcar made a complete loop, and the Pelicans won the Dixie Series in baseball. Moreover, it was a time when doctors made house calls and women donned gloves to go shopping. Fascinating period photographs accompany intimate and loving descriptions of the Crescent City of the thirties, capturing the mood and magic of that decade. This volume brings to life the New Orleans of the past and allows the reader to discover-or rediscover-the character of that time and place. The author's recollections will appeal to non-New Orleanians, that is, to anyone who grew up in America during the depression era. She recalls, for example, the leisurely pace of pre-television society in which radio held a powerfully unique role, as well as the headline fashions of the day and the cultural mores that now may seem quaint to many. Mary Lou Widmer, a native New Orleanian, is president of the South Louisiana Chapter of Romance Writers of America. She has written several articles for New Orleans publications, and is the author of Night Jasmine, Beautiful Crescent, and Lace Curtain . Widmer is also the author of New Orleans in the Twenties, New Orleans in the Forties, and New Orleans in the Fifties, all published by Pelican.

The aim of Recharting the Thirties is to revitalize the awareness of the reading public with regard to eighteen writers whose books have been largely ignored by publishers and scholars since their major works first appeared in the thirties. The selection is not based on a political agenda, but encompasses a wide and divergent range of philosophies; clearly, the contrasts between Empson and Upward, or between Powell and Slater, indicated the wide-ranging vision of the period. Women writers of the period have largely been marginalized, and the writings of Sackville-West and Burdekin, for example, not only present distinct feminine voices of the period, but also illuminate how much good literature has been forgotten.