War, Peace, and All That Jazz (1918-1945)

From woman's suffrage to Babe Ruth's home runs, from Louis Armstrong's jazz to Franklin Delano Roosevelt's four presidential terms, from the finale of one world war to the dramatic close of the second, War, Peace, and All That Jazz presents the story of some of the most exciting years in U.S. history. With the end of World War I, many Americans decided to live it up, going to movies, driving cars, and cheering baseball games a plenty. But alongside this post-WWI spree was high unemployment, hard times for farmers, ever-present racism, and, finally, the Depression, the worst economic disaster in U.S. history, flip-flopping the nation from prosperity to scarcity. Along came one of our country's greatest leaders, F.D.R., who promised a New Deal, gave Americans hope, and then saw them through the horrors and victories of World War II. These three decades—full of optimism and despair, progress and Depression, and, of course, War, Peace, and All That Jazz—forever changed the United States.

Covers the period of American history from 1917 to 1945, including the Roaring Twenties, the Great Depression, and World War II.

Joy Hakim

Biography

Armed with a bachelor's degree in government from Smith and a master's from Goucher College, Hakim started out as a teacher, and later worked as a newspaper writer and editor. Realizing that the rather dry text and lifeless prose of some history books she was using to teach with made her students less than enthusiastic learners -- and believing that U.S. history should be as fun to read as fiction -- Hakim began to develop the A History of U.S. series of American history lessons. It took Hakim seven years to finish the series -- which owes much of its kid-friendly appeal to the author's practice of using children as her editors.

A History of U.S. was a hit with students and critics alike, winning the James A. Michener Prize for Writing in 1997. In addition, esteemed historians have endorsed Hakim's teachings with as much enthusiasm as she brings to her subject. John Adams author David McCullough describes her lively and effective approach: "Never dull, never the least plodding, [Hakim] brings refreshing spirit and common sense to the telling of every episode."

In 2002's Freedom: A History of U.S., Hakim examines the theme of freedom and what it means to America -- from the actions of our founding fathers to the watershed events of the Civil Rights movement, through the challenges we face in the wake of the September 11 attacks. A 16-part PBS companion special features a star-studded roster of hosts from Today anchor Katie Couric to Hollywood power couple Christopher and Dana Reeve. The Reeves, on why they chose to participate in the event, write on the book's jacket: "Freedom offers us the opportunity to examine the road we have traveled, to better understand why we have fought so hard to keep the idea of freedom at the core of what we believe."

According to Hakim, it's all about the story. On her publisher's Web site, she sums up her signature approach: "Finding the story in a subject is to discover its essence. If we can teach our students to pattern the world into stories, we can turn them into powerful, analytical thinkers."

Good To Know

When she's not writing and researching at her Virginia home, she spends time sharing stories with her grandchildren in Colorado.