Ella Mae and the Great Depression

This book discusses memoirs from my mother as she grew up and lived before, during, and after the Great Depression. It details some of her experiences. She was from a very poor background educationally and financially, like many people were during those days. It discusses her poor living conditions, her discomforts, and how she lacked any of the conveniences that one has today. It details how hard people had to work at that time and how she persevered to the end—ever, ever struggling to reach her goal of a permanent home. Some of the types of working conditions are described: how difficult it was to get a job that paid enough to live, how hard it was to keep enough food to eat, and how uncomfortable their living conditions were. The homes were poorly built and drafty. It emphasizes the struggle to get rid of bedbugs since they seemed to be everywhere, and just the difficulty to keep warm during winter since there was no central heat or air- conditioning. It discusses her father going to World War I and his war conditions and hazards, such as body lice, gases, death, and not having enough to eat. Then, her husband was drafted into World War II. It touches on the polio epidemic and hospital conditions. It tells how she scrimped and saved unendingly to finally reach her goal of a permanent, warm, and comfortable home. Young people will see a great deal of contrast between living conditions then and now.