Book #28

The Little Girl Who Fought the Great Depression: Shirley Temple and the 1930s America by John F. Kasson

308 pages

This book really reminded me of some of the texts I read in my sociology classes in college (except much less wordy and fact-y).

Honestly, as much as I've enjoyed 1930s and 1940s movies in my life, I really didn't know all that much about Shirley Temple outside of "Animal Crackers in my Soup." So I found this a great alternative to a biography of Shirley -- it gave me a look into the timeline of her career and how the shape of America in that day and time helped sky-rocket her career into an unbelievable ride of child stardom.

This was a quick and easy read, and I enjoyed all the anecdotes about children growing up surrounded by Shirley merchandise.

It was also a nice glimpse into child stardom in the 1930s and the Hollywood machine. The tidbit I kept coming back to and remembering is that to help portray her child-like image for longer, a year was shaved off her age when she started having success. She didn't even know her own real age until her 13th birthday when she was finally let on to her own little secret. Crazy!

I enjoyed this book. You've got to love a well-written non-fiction text!

Next up: The Astronaut Wives Club by Lily Koppel