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Rating: 
Summary: Discover an exciting decade full of the seeds of modernity
Review: After reading Jonathan Yardley's review of this book in the Washington Post, I bought it to learn about a decade I knew little about. This book fulfilled its promise and more.Rather than look at a timeline of events, it examines themes that ran through the 20s, presenting key figures, looking at social events, such as the stock market rise and fall and prohibition, and the narrative it presents is lively and immensely interesting. This is history as it should be written.
Rating:
Summary: The Roaring Twenties, and Then Some
Review: America has not had a sweeping popular history of the 1920s since Frederick Allen's "Only Yesterday," published some 70 years ago. Now Miller has surpassed Allen with a book that covers the roaring decade in greater depth, and does it in dancing, supremely readable prose. He brings the 20s alive, with all the jazz, bathtub gin, scandal, Babe Ruth and Hemingway that
have made the period such a favorite for Hollywood. But it was not all laughs and bubbles; Miller reminds us that the KKK was reborn then, and describes its crimes. Radio and air travel were changing the way Americans dealt with each other and the world. Fierce showdowns in mines and factories were redefining relations between capital and labor. Miller makes a convincing case that the political and economic excesses of the booming 20s clearly foreshadowed what has happened in the nation in the decade just past. It's all here, and it's fun to read. It gets an easy five stars.
Rating:
Summary: All History Books Should Be Like This.
Review: Nathan Miller is a great writer, you can tell that he loves his craft, he does it well. He tells the story of the 1920's very well and keeps his reader entertained. He is an expert at keeping the discipline of writing a good history book while having creativity of writing an entertaining story. This is the first major history of the 1920's since Allen's, "Only Yesterday," I've been waiting for a good book on the 1920's since reading Allen's because when Allen wrote his book Hoover was still president! Obviously someone needed to write a new book on the 1920's, Miller does that here and analyzes everything that Allen left out. Some of the things that Allen did not go into much detail about in, "Only Yesterday" include the African American plight and the labor struggles during the period. Obviously Allen does not go into the end of Hoover's term because he was still president when the book was published. If you were trying to choose between the two books, this one and, "Only Yesterday," I would certainly recommend this one. Miller has created what should become the definitive book on the 1920's, it is, as I've mentioned before, not only extremely informative but also an entertaining journey.
Rating: 
Summary: A Well-written History, but No New Outlook or Judgments
Review: Nathan Miller writes well enough to keep your attention throughout this book. He hits all the highlights of one of the most celebrated decades in U.S. history - from F Scott Fitzgerald to Charles Lindbergh, from the Scopes Trial to women's changing fashions -- but never gets bogged down on any particular area. But Miller's judgments on the decade are too conventional. He has, for example, the typical disdain for the three Republican presidents whose tenure spans the decade. He wears it lightly, but it's obviously there. Miller also seems to accept much of the criticism by America's men of letters for the crassness of their own society, and often approvingly cites remarks they make about aspects of American life. H.L. Mencken is quoted with a disparaging remark about Coolidge's social instincts; John Kenneth Galbraith is quoted on the Great Depression; Warren Harding is compared to Sinclair Lewis's literary character George Babbitt. Haven't we all tasted this literary ragout before? Why the need for another helping? Miller still occasionally surprises with some small story or detail. Sigmund Freud's visit to the United States is discussed in a small section on the psychiatrist's enormous influence in America. I had forgotten about the emergence of so many new skyscrapers in the twenties. And it was fascinating to read about the land mania in Florida. But these interesting sidelines fail to elevate the book above mediocrity. If you haven't read about the 1920s before, you might find this history very interesting, but if you already know a good deal about the decade, this book will add little to your understanding of it.
Rating:
Summary: A Well-written History, but No New Outlook or Judgments
Review: Nathan Miller writes well enough to keep your attention throughout this book. He hits all the highlights of one of the most celebrated decades in U.S. history - from F Scott Fitzgerald to Charles Lindbergh, from the Scopes Trial to women's changing fashions -- but never gets bogged down on any particular area. But Miller's judgments on the decade are too conventional. He has, for example, the typical disdain for the three Republican presidents whose tenure spans the decade. He wears it lightly, but it's obviously there. Miller also seems to accept much of the criticism by America's men of letters for the crassness of their own society, and often approvingly cites remarks they make about aspects of American life. H.L. Mencken is quoted with a disparaging remark about Coolidge's social instincts; John Kenneth Galbraith is quoted on the Great Depression; Warren Harding is compared to Sinclair Lewis's literary character George Babbitt. Haven't we all tasted this literary ragout before? Why the need for another helping? Miller still occasionally surprises with some small story or detail. Sigmund Freud's visit to the United States is discussed in a small section on the psychiatrist's enormous influence in America. I had forgotten about the emergence of so many new skyscrapers in the twenties. And it was fascinating to read about the land mania in Florida. But these interesting sidelines fail to elevate the book above mediocrity. If you haven't read about the 1920s before, you might find this history very interesting, but if you already know a good deal about the decade, this book will add little to your understanding of it.
Rating:
Summary: A Book Packed With Information
Review: The people we associate with the decade of the 1920's are all here along with anecdotes about all of them. I am not much of a fan of political history, and this book has its share of stories involving Woodrow Wilson, Warren G. Harding, Calvin Coolidge, Herbert Hoover, and F.D.R. However, author Nathan Miller provides us with human interest stories of each of these presidents in addition to individuals from the world of entertainment, sports, industry, and gangsterdom. The decade of prohibition from use of alcohol and the consequences from passage of the 18th Amendment is dealt with in detail. Great social changes were sweeping the nation with the coming of radio, the automobile, and motion pictures to name a few. The 20's brought us radio, the 50's brought television, and the 90's brought us the internet. I found the book to be very informative, and even though the book is nearly 400 pages long, it was a very interesting read with a colorful cast of characters that the 1920's brought us. Whether you like political or social history you will enjoy both in this book.
Rating:
Summary: A Book Packed With Information
Review: The people we associate with the decade of the 1920's are all here along with anecdotes about all of them. I am not much of a fan of political history, and this book has its share of stories involving Woodrow Wilson, Warren G. Harding, Calvin Coolidge, Herbert Hoover, and F.D.R. However, author Nathan Miller provides us with human interest stories of each of these presidents in addition to individuals from the world of entertainment, sports, industry, and gangsterdom. The decade of prohibition from use of alcohol and the consequences from passage of the 18th Amendment is dealt with in detail. Great social changes were sweeping the nation with the coming of radio, the automobile, and motion pictures to name a few. The 20's brought us radio, the 50's brought television, and the 90's brought us the internet. I found the book to be very informative, and even though the book is nearly 400 pages long, it was a very interesting read with a colorful cast of characters that the 1920's brought us. Whether you like political or social history you will enjoy both in this book.
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