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3.59 AVERAGE
3.59 AVERAGE
informative
medium-paced
This book gives the background to several important social movements that began in the 1950s including biographies of key players who have often been overlooked. It gives a lot of insight into the more unconventional sides of the 1950s.
informative
medium-paced
I picked this up from the library after hearing Will Campos mention it during the Dungeons and Daddies Call of Cthulhu arc, and I’m so glad I followed that breadcrumb trail. The Fifties: An Underground History is nothing like the dry, sanitized version of the ’50s most of us were taught in school.
James R. Gaines pulls back the curtain on what was really happening beneath the surface of the so-called “Golden Age,” and the result is fascinating.
James R. Gaines pulls back the curtain on what was really happening beneath the surface of the so-called “Golden Age,” and the result is fascinating.
This book is packed with rich, surprising stories about the artists, thinkers, outcasts, and rebels who quietly laid the foundation for the massive cultural shifts of the ’60s and beyond.
Gaines connects all the threads—race, gender, sexuality, politics, media—with clarity and nuance, and the writing never feels like a slog. Instead, it reads like a behind-the-scenes tour through a decade that was way more complex (and subversive) than it gets credit for.
Gaines connects all the threads—race, gender, sexuality, politics, media—with clarity and nuance, and the writing never feels like a slog. Instead, it reads like a behind-the-scenes tour through a decade that was way more complex (and subversive) than it gets credit for.
It gave me a whole new lens through which to see the era—and it’s definitely made me a more informed GM when running anything mid-century or conspiracy-adjacent. Highly recommended for history nerds, creatives, or anyone who suspects that the clean-cut 1950s weren’t quite as squeaky as advertised.
For a historical overview, this book was deeply profound, bringing to light the lost figures and background shakers of a decade historians usually skip. After reading this book, it is undeniable that the social unrest of the 1960s would not be possible without those who laid the groundwork in the 50s.
Highly recommend!
Highly recommend!
The gay rights and civil rights chapters were strong, the feminism chapter could have used some work, and the ecology chapter started off slow, but really ended with a bang.
Louis Menand's 'The Free World' covered a lot of the same material as this one in a much more interesting and fulfilling way. Luckily it's fairly short but that's one of the shortcomings.
informative
fast-paced
dark
emotional
informative
medium-paced
