A review by nickc5
The American People in the Great Depression by David M. Kennedy

3.0

Kenney covers the New Deal with skill and avoids the dryness of traditional political histories. His unraveling of the personal character of important leaders of the New Deal was captivating and instructive. It is somewhat clear his grasp of the economics behind the Great Depression was less than fortified, though that is excusable due to the intent of the novel. It is, however, hard to forgive his one-dimensional treatment of the international situation (including the consequences of the Treaty of Versailles in the prologue). The last chapter "The Gathering Storm," is also a superficial exposition of Hitler, his aims, and his political strategy. I was left shaking my head while reading the sweeping conclusions made by Kennedy -- (a) there is significant scholarship that illustrates Hitler was an opportunist rather than a mastermind of European politics (b) he hoped for war to be stalled until 1942 [not 1938/9] (c) Hitler was surprised by the declarations of war by France and Britain, and was not expecting as much resistance over Czechoslovakia. All in all, Kennedy presents a highly deterministic view of Hitler's rise - starting from the Treaty of Versailles - which is inherently dubious. I was surprised by this very superficial, and traditional American perspective of the events leading up to World War II.