The Century for Young People: 1901-1936: Becoming Modern America Book

Experience the greatest moments of the 20th century with an accessible narrative that makes history come alive.

Adapted from the #1 national bestseller especially for young readers!

The twentieth century was a time of tremendous change, the most eventful hundred years in human history. Join Peter Jennings and Todd Brewster for a fascinating journey back in time to experience, through vivid first-person accounts, the most surprising and the most terrifying events of the past hundred years. These are the voices of ordinary people—children and adults—who were part of history in the making. Their joys and sorrows, their hopes and fears provide a compelling insider's look at momentous events that have reshaped the world. The Century for Young People is a riveting read and an essential resource. It is the story of our time for all time.

Children's Literature

From a student's perspective history can be one of the dullest subjects imaginable. A seemingly endless sequence of names, dates, and countless facts to memorize can easily drain the life out of what should be one of the most vibrant areas of learning. What brings history to life is the raw material of daily life that allows students to connect with the events of the past through the lives lived then. It is this first person approach that is seized by Jennings and Brewster in this three volume history of the twentieth century. In volume one the authors address the critical events of the first three decades of the century. In those years a world war was fought, the Great Depression spread across the globe, segregationist policies became embedded in America, and the plight of immigrants persisted. Through the words of a World War I infantryman, a witness to a lynching, a young girl at Kitty Hawk, a Jewish victim of the emerging Nazi threat, and others Jennings and Brewster allow readers into the world that these individuals lived in. In addition to the first person selections included in this fine work, the authors also do an excellent job of telling the story of the major happenings of the first third of the twentieth century. In this way Jennings and Brewster accomplish the difficult goal of crafting a concise history of a tumultuous time period in human history while also offering insight into the experiences of everyday people who lived during the era in question. Reviewer: Greg M. Romaneck