Harvey Green

Very readable, fascinating book about living as a white female in America during the mid to late 1800s. Green uses the advertisements, private diaries, and household goods as sources to flesh out his tale.

A few fave quotes:
"Thus the resistance of workers to the injustices and excesses of the late-nineteenth century economy were not seen as indicators of some weakness in the system, but as the result of some individual or collective failure among the populace."

"The separation of the economic show more (male) sector from the domestic (female) sector thus placed women in the position of culpability for societal ills, but denied them access to the real means of rectifying them."

"The two great women's political reform movements of the turn of the century--suffrage and prohibition--became law when advocates convinced opponents that maternal influence would halt the precipitous decline of WASP culture." show less

(2.5) How can you write a book about something so various? Answer: You can't. Plenty of facts, but no real depth, of course, since the topic is the cultural-historical importance of wood. Weird sectioning, low quality pictures detract, but lots of tidbits for those with the patience. Skip it.

This is the last volume of a really good series on the history of everyday life in America.

ABSOLUTE NECESSARY BOOK ABOUT WOOD. YOU LEARN OF WOOD'S CRAFT, CULTURE, HISTORY