The Century for Young People

The 20th century brought seeds of change, global nightmares, years of doubt, and machine dreams. These are also some of the chapter headings of this stunning tribute to the past 100 years. Adapting the bestselling adult version of The Century, journalists Peter Jennings and Todd Brewster take an unusual approach to the overwhelming task of capturing a century in 241 pages. Rather than using a standard didactic, textbook-style method, the authors choose to focus on the lives of ordinary people--those who influenced, and were most affected by, the radical changes of the 1900s. Marty Glickman describes the effect Teddy Roosevelt had on him as a boy. Gilda Snow's father, an electrician for the 1939 New York World's Fair, took her on a "backstage" tour of the event when she was 9 years old. Inez Jessie Baskin experienced the Montgomery bus boycotts firsthand. Stacy Horn, creator of an Internet virtual community, muses on the phenomenon of online relationships. Each sumptuous spread comes alive with Life magazine-style photos (over 200 total), compelling captions, feature essays on historical events and people, and pale blue sidebars with the stories of ordinary men and women of the century. With a new introduction aimed at young readers, and a higher personal story to narrative ratio than the full-length version, this magnificent volume belongs in any family's collection. (Ages 10 and older) --Emilie Coulter