Customer Reviews

Riding the Rails: Teenagers on the Move During the Great Depression

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

My interest in this book was sparked by a bit of family history. A great-uncle of mine hoboed on trains before the 1920s. Born in 1900, he was attempting to hop a train in 1919 in Chicago, but lost his grip, fell from the car, and lost a leg beneath the train. All I know about this uncle was from a newspaper clipping from 1919 when a brave reporter interviewed my great-uncle just before he died from the infection in his leg.

The stories in "Riding the Rails" were tremendously moving to me. It gave me a perspecitive of the Depression and of Hoboes I hadn't had before. The personal stories were incredible, and the lucidity of expression by these people looking back on those difficult years was accurately relayed in the book. More than once I had to stop reading because of the tears in my eyes. I know this must sound melodramatic, but this book really moved me. But also, I must say this book reaffirmed my faith in human kindness and the perseverance of the human spirit.

This work was thoughly enjoyable. From the first moment I recieved it I reflected on its contents, pouring over each page as a child first learning of his past. "Riding the Rails" vividly portrays children thrust into adulthood upon their first adventure across our wide open country.

Not that they were out to conquer the world or to make their mark, but moreover to find a better way of life, or just simply to survive.

These are the stories of those that did survive. Let's not forget those who fell beneath the wheels of destiny, or those that died silently in cold empty boxcars amid the despair of the Great Depression. Their pain is silenced, but much of their legacy lives on.

Mr. Ulys, thank you for all your efforts in preparing this book and for bringing these subjects to the light of day.

Riding the Rails tells a story not often heard about life during the Great Depression. Although the story is fresh, it really puts into perspective what was going on in America at that time. By using teenage runaways to illustrate the struggles of our country, Ulys puts a very human face on the time period.
I thought the way the book was divided into sections with each section illustrating a different aspect of the runaways' lives, was extremely helpful. Each section began with an overview of the particular subject, using people as well as facts to tell the story. The section ended with the true life stories of the runaways told in their own words, which I found to be the most enjoyable part of the book. You could tell a lot of research went into finding reliable and interesting sources, because all of the personal accounts were compelling.
This book tied together so many aspects of the economic disaster that was the 1930s. By showing readers a face behind the poverty, they can understand how the country's economy has everything to do with the lives of its people. The stories told are so sad and hard to believe that it can serve as motivation to see that our country learns from its mistakes and never lets the economy become what it was at that time.
Overall, I found this to be an interesting read and well worth the time to gain insight into a compelling piece of history.

This book helps bring home the reality of life during the Depression. I think it would be a good one for high-school- or junior-high-age kids to read while studying this period of history. It doesn't tell the whole story by any means but it would be a good adjunct to a study of the period.

I disagree completely with the reviewer who said that the use of many, short quotes "makes for dull reading and dilutes the overall power of the experiences shared by these people." For one thing, there are longer first-person accounts at the end of each chapter. And to me the shorter quotes used in each chapter are moving in themselves. I also appreciated the greater scope of commentary they provided, more than just few stories in their entirety would have done.

I also disagree with the person who said there should have been more first-person accounts and less commentary. I think the commentary helps set the historical perspective, which not all readers might have.

That said, I can see how someone might want to read more first-hand accounts after reading this book. Some are mentioned in the bibliography.

I am sorry I never had a chance to see the documentary, Riding the Rails, because as moving as the book was I can see this approach and this material working so effectively on film. I will, of course, now see the documentary.

I was very moved by the stories in this book. This is not in any way, shape or form a scholary historical study of the phenomenon of kids riding the rails during the Depression. Instead it is a panorama createde from various of their stories and all the more beautiful for their tales having been told in this manner. The ways in which these kids were helped along the road and how these experiences changed and enhance their world view was particulary note worthy. Receiving compassion taught compassion. It was a scary, important time and it was nice to hear some authentic voices from that period.

I found this book to be an extremely interesting and readable account of the adventures that teenagers lived through while riding the rails across this country during the depression. I commend the author for his unique idea to solicit AARP members through its publication - "Modern Maturity", and, in the process, harvested a wealth of experiences that I believe otherwise would have been lost. Their first hand experiences are not only exciting, memorable and moving, but also give us a view of American life that is rapidly fading into history. If you have an interest in this area, it is a must read.

While Dad never rode the rails, he was a part of this generation and a part of the CCC, which saved many of these youngsters lives.
The book is a great trip to understanding how life was and how hard supporting a family was in the Depression.
I recommended it to my teenage son who can't understand how good he has it. My Father was impressed with the honesty in the book and the truth, as he knew it, in the stories from the survivors.

E.L. Uys should be commended for his efforts on this book. First, he tackles a topic that has not traditionally been looked at--teenagers who, during the Great Depression, decided for one reason or another, to leave their homes and families and illegally travel from city to city in trains. More than give a staight-through narrative as most authors do, he allows the rail riders to tell their own stories. Uys arranges the narratives (a chapter long, usually three in a row), then inserts his own chapter of commentary pointing out similarities and differences in the stories he's researched. What results is something that can be thought of as a book discussion group, where Uys is a participant. Uys simply points out many of the interesting aspects of the stories and sometimes other things he's researched while leaving the powerful first person narritive alone. Through this the reader can see not only the historical context and big picture (usually thanks to Uys), but also the smaller details that many third-person book length narratives might leave out--the long, maddening hours one would experience if he was unfortunate enough to hop on a car with a flat wheel (constant jackhammer-esque pounding for hours upon hours, preventing sleep or comfort of any kind); the looks on people's faces or tones of voices as they offer to help or chase away hobos; the story of the lady who called the police on a starving young begger as she fed some stray animals instead; the many anonymous people who paid for meals for starving teens; watching a fellow teenager die after he tried to jump onto a moving car, fell and had his legs severed by the train's wheels and the list can go on. This book was an interesing and moving one as Uys and his interviewees show both the freedoms and the dangers of riding the rails. As an interesting side-note. I decided to read this book afters seeing a documentary on MTV about modern day Rail Riders ("Travelers"). Knowing that a similar subculture of people still exist, experiencing the same freedom and dangers (added to it a sense of confusion and hopelessness) made the book that more moving. I would recommend it.

Mr. Uys did an excellent, remarkable job on this book which relates a very important part of American history--the depresion. He let the people speak, and "hearing" them was very moving. These words weren't just cut-and-dried pieces of information about an era--this was REAL. These people were there, they lived it, and only they could tell it authentically. Think! No work, no food, no homes! Just riding the rails from here to there and back again and trying to find a way to stay alive. We also learn more about President Roosevelt's CCC and how it saved many boys by giving them hot meals, shelter, work, discipline, and confidence in themelves. I better understand now the depression and why my grandparents and parents still cling so tightly to their hard-earned money. I wish so much that a book like this would be used in our schools so the younger generations could know that history isn't just some long ago dead subject. We need to know from the people who "were there" the events that shaped America. And all Americans should heed what these people have to say and appreciate those who fought and toiled for what we now take for granted. It could happen again.

This is a great peek into an aspect of the Great Depression period that is nearly forgotten in this day and age. Young and old alike can find interesting subject matter here, provided by those who were there and by the extensive research that was done for the project.