Customer Reviews

CITY OF BIG SHOULDERS: A HISTORY OF CHICAGO

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

A quick, readable book gives you a taste of how Chicago emerged from being an undesirable swamp to being one of the world's great cities. Interesting accounts of canal and rail transport, the fire, the fair, and the reign of Mayor Daley.

The book whets my appetite for more information about the city.

I loved reading this book, which is full of interesting facts about Chicago's rich history. It doesn't go into extreme detail of every event, but it definitely completes its intended task of entertaining and educating the reader.

I'm from Chicago and always felt I was lacking info on my city's history. I wanted to fill in the gaps without reading a textbook - I found a perfect balance of information and readability in this book. Really enjoyable and well worth a look by Chicagoans and lovers of American history.

This is a concise yet informative look at Chicago. Author Robert Spinney captures how our city quickly grew from a tiny trading village by Lake Michigan into one of the world's great metropolises. Readers see that Chicago expanded almost immediately from its incorporation in 1835 via railroads, industrialization and immigration. In 1860 Chicago hosted the convention that chose Abraham Lincoln for President, and by 1900 it stood as the world's fifth largest city. The author examines the immigrant groups (Irish, German, Italian, Poles, Jews, Greeks, etc.) that fueled this massive growth, plus their specifc neighborhoods. As many know, immigrants and their children comprised about three-quarters of Chicago's population in the earlier 1900's. Then it's on to Progressivism, the 1920's gangster era, the Great Depression (1930's), World War II, the great migration of Southern Blacks, etc. Readers see how Chicago declined from 1950-1990 from rising crime, racial problems, closing factories, and surbubanization - factors that also hammered the other cities in the Midwest and Northeast in the post-war era. But he concludes with clear signs of improvement that emerged in the 1990's. Readers come away nicely informed, and see how Chicago has evolved and changed throughout its history.

I enjoyed these readable pages, but was distracted by the numerous factual errors. For example, Mayor Daley didn't win the 1960 election for John F. Kennedy (JFK would have won without Illinois), and Mayor Harold Washington defeated Ed Vydolyak in the 1987 general election - he defeated former mayor Jane Byrne in the primary. Spinney even miscounts the years his favorite baseball team has gone without a title. Such errors are hardly critical, but they detract from the text. Still, this informative book provides an interesting look at one of the world's greatest cities.

Reading it prior to my trip to Chicago. Good narration. Good history. Not too boring.