The Fifties

David Halberstam

Dec 2012 · Open Road Media

About this ebook

This vivid New York Times bestseller about 1950s America from a Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist is “an engrossing sail across a pivotal decade” (Time).

Joe McCarthy. Marilyn Monroe. The H-bomb. Ozzie and Harriet. Elvis. Civil rights. It’s undeniable: The fifties were a defining decade for America, complete with sweeping cultural change and political upheaval. This decade is also the focus of David Halberstam’s triumphant The Fifties, which stands as an enduring classic and was an instant New York Times bestseller upon its publication. More than a survey of the decade, it is a masterfully woven examination of far-reaching change, from the unexpected popularity of Holiday Inn to the marketing savvy behind McDonald’s expansion. A meditation on the staggering influence of image and rhetoric, The Fifties is vintage Halberstam, who was hailed by the Denver Post as “a lively, graceful writer who makes you . . . understand how much of our time was born in those years.” This ebook features an extended biography of David Halberstam.

Ratings and reviews

The Fifties would be a lot to cover in any one volume, and Halberstam solves that problem by focusing on a few key themes - the cold war, civil rights, automobiles, media, American affluence - that flow and flourish in the subsequent decade. In fact, this almost serves as a prequel to his earlier writings on the 1960s. But his focus feels somehow rushed, leaving me wanting more depth and detail. Likewise, the reader is left feeling that important topics were left out. Good but dissatisfying.

This was one of the best books I've read in a while, born in 1956 myself, it shed light on so many things, what a great time it was to grow up

Lots of eye-opening information and stories of the 50's.

About the author

DIVDavid Halberstam (1934–2007) was a Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist and bestselling author. He is best known for both his courageous coverage of the Vietnam War for the New York Times, as well as for his twenty-one nonfiction books—which cover a wide array of topics, from the plight of Detroit and the auto industry to the captivating origins of baseball’s fiercest rivalry. Halberstam wrote for numerous publications throughout his career and, according to journalist George Packer, single-handedly set the standard of “the reporter as fearless truth teller.” Halberstam died in 2007./div