For four consecutive years she was the world’s box-office champion. With her image appearing in periodicals and advertisements roughly twenty times daily, she rivaled FDR and Edward VIII as the most photographed person in the world. Her portrait brightened the homes of countless admirers, among them J. Edgar Hoover, Andy Warhol, and Anne Frank.Distinguished cultural historian John F. Kasson shows … shows how, amid the deprivation and despair of the Great Depression, Shirley Temple radiated optimism and plucky good cheer that lifted the spirits of millions and shaped their collective character for generations to come.
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A fairly dry exploration of the effect Shirley Temple and her movies had on the morale of the United States during the Great Depression. Let’s just say the world has changed since then. A lot,
This book was not so much about Shirley Temple as it was about the era. If you want to have a better understanding of the Depression, this is a good way to go. There are a few chapters devoted to Shirley, and they were also informative – in a different way in comparison to Shirley Temple Black’s autobiography.
I learned some things i didn’t know about Shirley Temple and her affect on the great depression.
Not what I expected, not a biography. This is more of a history of the time period with a little bit thrown in about Shirley Temple. A bit about how her movies affected people of the depression and about making movies during this time.
I would have liked a more in depth biography of Shirley Temple.
I did not finish this book. There was so much about politics and President Roosevelt. I thought this was going to be about Shirley Temple.
Wasn’t my cup of tea.
Enjoyed reading about the star whose childhood coincided with my own. A trip Easy-to-readSteamyEntertainingWonderful charactersTwisteddown nostalgia freeway–I remember Shirley Temple curls, Shirley Temple dolls. I’m not sure about the author’s premise– that her popularity and her sunny disposition helped people through the depression. It is an interesting theory, at least
I would have liked to see more about how the Shirley Temple movies impacted people during the depression. Too many movie reviews.
It was ok,
More about the times, but little about Shirley
Wonderful story of a truly wonderful person. She gave so much happiness!!
This book was very informative, full of facts about the Great Depression, but not much about Shirley Temple.
An enjoyable blending of history and the charming life of a wonderful young lady
Shirley Temple was a very sweet and real actress. This is the true story of her life, and the book even has several great pictures. This book didn’t disappoint! If you like biographies, you will love this one.
I was looking forward to a great read about Shirley Temple and stopped reading after the first 30 pages. It was a very, very detailed account of the Great Depression. I checked the reviews before reading further and found that many had said that the whole book is more of the same.
Eye opening facts about the depression. Her treatment by her parents made me sad.
Title was misleading. I expected it to be more about Shirley Temple
There seemed to be more information about FDR than Shirley Temple, my namesake.
The author does a great job informing the reader what the political, economic, social at racial climate was at this time.
I read it for a book club. It was interesting. It dealt with one of my childhood idols. I had curly golden hair. I thought I could sing and dance. Few others did. Still I had hoped for more about her life. It mostly dealt in celebrities she worked with as names. I thought her post Hollywood life and the good she did then would be included.