Books Set in the 1930s

Book Summary

Photojournalist Dorothea Lange created some of the most iconic photos of the 20th century. She is best known for her work in the 1930s during the Dust Bowl. In this riveting historical fiction, we get to see the world through her lens.

Dorothea arrived in San Francisco at 22, determined to make her way independently as a woman. However, she soon married a talented but volatile painter, Maynard Dixon. By the early 30s, her marriage was floundering as much as the economy. So, she took to the road with her camera, creating images that inspired, reformed, and defined the era.

Book Summary

Set in 1932 during the Great Depression, This Tender Land follows four orphans, including 12 year old Odie, who have escaped the abusive Lincoln Indian Training School in Minnesota.

The kids set off down the Mississippi River and have to survive the environment while being pursued by the school. The group must decide whether to trust each stranger they encounter, and each character discovers more about themselves along the way.

Book Summary

Each summer, the Adler family rents out their Atlantic City home to vacationers and moves into the cramped apartment above their bakery. Their daughters are now young adults, with Florence home from college and Fannie on bed rest during pregnancy following the loss of a baby. Florence plans to spend the summer training for her plan to swim the English Channel. 

The small space becomes even more crowded when the father, Joseph, takes in a woman he helped emigrate from Nazi Germany. When a tragedy strikes, mom Esther begins a web of lies in an attempt to protect her daughter Fannie, but will this really help in the long run?

Book Summary

In 1932, Charles Lindbergh was America’s golden boy. He had broken barriers by flying across the Atlantic and had a lovely, wealthy wife. The family made headlines in a new way when their toddler, Charles Jr. was kidnapped from the family home in New Jersey.

The boy’s nanny, a Scottish immigrant named Betty Gow, found comfort in caring for the boy after a hard romantic break-up. When Charles Jr. disappeared, the media and public made Betty, aka the Lindbergh Nanny, the prime suspect. Betty was determined to find the truth, both to clear her name and to protect the child she adored.

Book Summary

You probably read this classic back in high school (or at least you were supposed to), but we recommend you give this famous book another read. Chances are you’ll get even more out of it this time around!

If you aren’t familiar with the story, it’s set in Alabama in 1933 and told from the perspective of a 6-year-old girl called Scout. Her widowed father, Atticus Finch, is a crusading local lawyer who risks everything to defend a black man accused of a terrible crime.

Book Summary

In Depression-era Kentucky, Del is the wife of the most celebrated preacher in Harlan County. She tries to lay low in her rigid life but can’t keep the status quo amid her husband’s infidelity. When a coal train comes through town, Del bravely jumps aboard in what she sees as her only chance for freedom.

As she travels across the country, she finds a new community among the other transient outcasts. Nomadic single mom Louisa quickly befriends Del and helps her learn how to live life on the rails. But the Depression is taking its toll, and desperate circumstances threaten their close bond.

Book Summary

The impoverished residents of Troublesome Creek struggle for nearly everything, but thanks to Roosevelt’s Kentucky Pack Horse Library Project, they aren’t lacking books.

Book woman Cussy Mary Carter is not only Troublesome Creek’s own traveling library but also the last living female of the rare Blue People ancestry. But not everyone approves of Cussy’s family or the government Library Project. Cussy wants to bring the joy of books to the hill folks, but she has to confront prejudice and suspicion as old as the Appalachians.

Book Summary

Looking to escape his circumstances, Jacob Jankowski jumps onto a passing train and suddenly finds himself thrust into the world of a circus struggling to survive during the Great Depression.

Because Jacob is just shy of his veterinary degree, he’s put in charge of caring for the circus menagerie. He becomes enamored with Marlena – the star of the equestrian show. But Marlena is married to the circus’s cruel animal trainer. Jacob also meets Rosie, an elephant that everyone had hoped would help save the circus, but who appears to be untrainable.

Book Summary

Spanning from 1933 to 1939, and from the streets of Toronto to the shores of Hong Kong, this Canadian historical fiction novel tells the story of a little-known chapter of WWII history.

With the Depression crippling Toronto, 18-year-old Molly puts aside her journalism dreams to work any job she can to help her family get by. But, as the summer of 1933 stretches on, the terrible wave of hate and anti-Semitism sweeping the globe reaches Toronto in the form of “Swastika Clubs” and “No Jews Allowed” signs. On a fateful night in August, tensions reached a boiling point between the local Irish and Jewish communities. The resulting riot has devastating consequences for Molly’s family and that of her best friend, Hannah.

Six years later, Molly is now working as a reporter for the local paper. With the war on the horizon and many people she loves in danger, Molly is forced to confront what happened on that terrible night back in 1933.

Book Summary

West With Giraffes is a charming tale of adventure that takes you on the ride of a lifetime from the East Coast of the US to the West, alongside a rowdy 17-year-old, a grumpy older man, and two giraffes. The year is 1938, and no American zoo has successfully housed giraffes before. The female zoo director of the San Diego Zoo believes she can do it. The giraffes have just survived a hurricane en route to the East Coast, and Riley Jones, the curmudgeonly head zookeeper, is responsible for safely transporting the giraffes from New York City to San Diego.

America is still in the throes of the Great Depression, and the Dust Bowl conditions continue to ravage the drought-stricken Southern Plains states. A coast-to-coast trek with giant animals is no easy feat. Jones begrudgingly teams up with a starving teenager named Woody to help him make the journey. The adventures along the way include run-ins with circus con artists, being tailed by a female photographer looking for a big scoop, an emotional visit to Woody’s hometown, and so much more.

At its heart, this is a coming-of-age story. Now, at the age of 105, Woody recounts his 12-day cross-country trip with Jones and the giraffes and how it shaped his life.

Book Summary

This novel tells the story behind The Wonderful Wizard of Oz through the eyes of Maud, the wife of author L. Frank Baum. The book follows two storylines: one tells the story of Maud’s youth as the rebellious daughter of a leading suffragette and the early years of Maud and Frank’s marriage on the prairie. 

The second storyline takes place in 1930s Hollywood when Maud learns that MGM is adapting The Wonderful Wizard of Oz into a movie. Then 77, Maud finagles her way onto the set in hopes of ensuring the producers stay true to the spirit of the book. She meets Judy Garland and recognizes in the young woman the yearning that defined her own life story.

Book Summary

On the evening of April 5, 1936, a tornado ripped through Tupelo, Mississippi, which was already suffering at the height of the Great Depression. More than 200 people were killed, with the exact numbers unknown because Black citizens made up ⅓ of the Tupelo population, but were not counted in casualty figures. 

Dovey, a Black grandmother barely survived being thrown into a lake by the winds. As she tries to make her way home through the destroyed streets, she stops at the home of the despised McNabb family and finds a White teenager, Jo, with a terrible head wound. 

Over the next few hours, Dovey and Jo struggle to navigate the town and the demons that connect them. The story is said to be a reminder of the power and promise that come when we reconnect.

Book Summary

This is the non-fiction story of nine working-class boys – sons of loggers, shipyard workers, and farmers – who beat all the odds to become the American rowing team. They weren’t expected to win at home, let alone defeat others on the international stage. Out of the depths of the Depression, these unlikely young men shocked the world by defeating the German team at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin.

In writing this story, Brown drew upon the boys’ own journals and vivid memories to paint a portrait of an era.

Book Summary

When Scottish teen Ella gets a chance to spend the summer of 1937 on the French Île de Ré, it changes the trajectory of her life. She meets the charming Christophe and they spend their days exploring the many beaches of the island. For the first time, Ella feels truly free.

However, with the start of WW2, Ella must return to Scotland. She jumps into volunteering for the war effort, but feels herself drifting further away from the person she was on the Île de Ré. Will she ever be able to recapture that magic in her life?

Book Summary

This book is based on the true story of Georgia Tann’s “adoption” agency that claimed to help orphans, but instead kidnapped poor children and trafficked them to wealthy families.

Twelve-year-old Rill Foss and her four younger siblings have a wonderful life on the Mississippi River aboard their family’s shanty boat. But on a stormy night when their father has to take their mother to the hospital, Rill is left in charge. Unfortunately, strangers arrive, and the kids are thrown into the Tennessee Children’s Home Society orphanage. They are assured that they will soon be returned to their parents – but quickly realize the dark truth.

In present-day South Carolina, Avery Stafford returns home to help her father during a health crisis. When she stumbles upon the possibility that her grandmother may be harboring a dark family secret, Avery becomes obsessed with her mission to uncover the truth.

Book Summary

This novel is set in 1985 Alabama as gray-headed Mrs. Threadgoode recounts her younger years to middle-aged Evelyn. Her stories transport you back to the 1930s when her friends Idgie and Ruth opened a cafe in tiny Whistle Stop, Alabama. While serving up good coffee and barbecue, the café was a place for friendship … and the occasional murder.

Book Summary

The Color Purple portrays the lives of African American women in the Deep South throughout the first half of the twentieth century, though most of the story takes place in the 1930s between the two world wars. Separated when they are young, sisters Celie and Nettie maintain their relationship through a series of letters spanning twenty years. This book broke the silence around domestic and sexual abuse, while taking readers on a journey of love and redemption.

Book Summary

Set against the backdrop of the Great Depression, this book transports readers to the turpentine camps and pine forests of the South. North Carolina earned its nickname – the Tar Heel State – from the thick, sticky sap that laborers extracted from the trees. It was hard and dangerous work, often in inhumane conditions.

When Rae’s husband, Warren, is hurt and cannot do the job, Rae disguises herself as a man and heads to the Swallow Hill turpentine camp in Georgia. There she meets Del, who is on the run from the mistakes of his past, and Cornelia, the browbeaten wife of the camp’s commissary owner. As the three form a stronger friendship, they begin to envision a path out of the camp and a better future.

Book Summary

William Dodd, a professor from Chicago, is named America’s ambassador to Germany at the rise of the Third Reich. His family joins him in Berlin, and his outgoing daughter, Martha, is immediately drawn into the parties, pomp, and handsome young men of the Third Reich.

While Martha becomes enamored with the “New Germany,” her father grows increasingly concerned by what he witnesses all around him as Adolf’s true character and ambition become more clear. By the end of 1933, however, even Martha finds herself living in terror.

Book Summary

On New Year’s Eve 1937, a young woman has a chance encounter with a handsome banker. She suddenly finds herself thrust into a yearlong journey into high society.

You’ll be drawn in by the characters and the sparkling depiction of New York’s social strata. As one review put it, “If a novel could win an award for best cinematography, this would take home the gold.”

Book Summary

Imagine being an average expectant mother in 1934, expecting a single baby, and then delivering five. When Yvonne, Annette, Cécile, Émilie, and Marie were born, they defied medical expectations and captured the attention of the world. However, the required medical care was extremely expensive and unaffordable for the parents. 

The Canadian government took custody of all five babies and put them in a privately built hospital. However, for the following nine years, the government exploited the children, turning them into an attraction called Quintland that became more popular than Niagara Falls.

Book Summary

Three women’s stories intertwine in the Florida Keys as a powerful hurricane approaches over the Labor Day weekend of 1935.

Key West native Helen Berner yearns to escape her abusive husband. Elizabeth Preston has traveled down from New York in search of a veteran of the Great War. Mirta Perez’s family suffered great losses in the Cuban Revolution of 1933, and now they have arranged her marriage to a man in a dangerous business, followed by a honeymoon in Key West.

The approaching storm is not the only danger that these women face as their paths unexpectedly cross.

Book Summary

During the 80 years leading up to the Great Depression, so-called Orphan Trains transported children from cities on the East Coast to the farmlands of the Midwest. The fates of the children on board – whether they would end up with loving families or end up with a childhood of hard labor – were determined by pure luck.

Vivian – now 91 – was one of those children, and the memories of her childhood are now tucked inside trunks in her attic. Eighteen-year-old Molly is aging out of the foster care system and is assigned community service helping the elderly Vivian clean out her home. She will soon learn that the two have much more in common than she ever expected.

Book Summary

Jewish ballet dancer Lilli hopes to leave Germany behind to escape the growing Nazi party, but before she can leave for Hollywood, she has a whirlwind romance with German Army Captain Marco Zeiller. After her heart is broken, she resumes her plan and makes it to Hollywood where she’s able to dance with Fred Astaire. 

He introduces her to high society, including Prince Edward, and life is glamorous and exciting for a while. But when Lilli is injured, ending her career, Nazi sympathizers Prince Edward and his mistress Wallis Simpson have new plans for Lilli. With war looming, Macro reinters Lilli’s life and tests her loyalties one by one.

Book Summary

It’s Memorial Day 1938, and New York socialite Lily Dane has returned with her family for another summer in the oceanfront community of Seaview, Rhode Island. But when Lily’s former best friend shows up at the beach, newly married to Lily’s former fiance, the summer no longer looks to be as peaceful and relaxing as planned.

Amid gossip and an impending hurricane, buried emotions and unexpected truths bubble to the surface.

Book Summary

The Nightingale tells the story of French sisters Vianne and Isabelle, who have always been at odds. Vianne is a rule-follower, and Isabelle is more rebellious and willing to speak her mind. With WWII escalating, Isabelle intends to fight for France, while Vianne simply wants to survive the war with her family intact – even if it means allowing a German officer to live in her home. 

Isabelle, who refuses to live passively under German authority, joins the French resistance and guides Allied airmen out of France after their planes are shot down – work for which she adopts the codename the Nightingale. As the war wages on, both sisters learn who they are and what they can do.

Book Summary

Cold Mountain Penitentiary is home to the Depression-worn men of E Block. All of them are convicted killers awaiting their time to walk the Green Mile – the path that leads to the electric chair known as “Old Sparky.”

Death row guard Paul Edgecombe has walked the mile with a lot of convicts, but he’s never met anyone else like John Coffey – a giant man with the mind of a child who has been condemned for a terrifyingly violent crime.

Book Summary

The six Mitford sisters were fixtures in British society between World Wars. Each sister was a strong-minded individual, but they also had a tight bond with each other until Diana divorced her husband to marry a fascist leader, and sister Unity followed her lead. Unity was even rumored to be Hilter’s mistress. 

Novelist sister Nancy is the only one to remain in contact with Diana and Unity, so it’s up to her to act when she learns that the sisters have become spies for the Nazi party. 

The story is told from the alternating viewpoints of Diana, Unity, and Nancy. 

Book Summary

Nitta is a young girl taken from her Japanese fishing village at the age of 9 and sold into slavery to a renowned geisha house. The city of Kyoto in the 1930s is a world in which appearances are paramount, where a girl’s virginity is auctioned to the highest bidder, where women are trained to attract the most powerful men, and where love is scorned as an illusion.