101 Years of Books: the 1930s

It took me all of June and July and into the beginning of August to finish these books from the 1930s. I read 6 novels, 1 cookbook, 2 memoirs, and 1 self-help book, written by authors from the U.S. (5), England (3), Ireland, and Denmark.

1930 The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett ★★

"You're an angel. I'll wait for you. If they hang you, I'll always remember you."

I deeply hated this book and every single character in it. Detective Sam Spade is a trash human. He calls all women "angels" and gropes them whenever he wants them to shut up. He does his best to make every single person feel like a complete idiot, and he seems to have no moral compass. He does no detecting. Plus, spoiler: you never get to see the real falcon. I feel like readers are supposed to be surprised about his lack of feeling for Brigid, the main female character, in the end, but I was never convinced he loved her because he never showed any emotion other than anger. I guess the point of this book is to not like the main character, but that premise was not compelling enough for me to impress me.

themes: greed, deceit, sexism, fatphobia, unsolved mysteries

1931 The Joy of Cooking by Irma S. Rombauer ★★

"Braised Lettuce: This is a very good 'quick' hot vegetable. Remove the outer leaves from a head of lettuce, cut the head into quarters and place them in a very small quantity of boiling stock. Cook the lettuce covered for about 8 minutes."

On the one hand, it may not be fair to quote the most distressing recipe I found in this book. On the other hand, it is quite distressing. This is a book of recipes that seems to be foundational for the home cook in the U.S., even now. I've seen (more modern and updated) versions of this book in many, many kitchens. But I was not at all impressed by the original. The only method of cooking vegetables seems to be boiling them, which everyone knows is actually the worst possible way. Although I did mark a few recipes that seemed edible, there were none that I was excited about trying. Also, there was surprisingly little content about the actual "joy" of cooking, and mostly just instructions on how to prepare various foods. The author is a character in the movie Julie and Julia about the woman who cooked every recipe in Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking, and although I'm not sure if this can be believed, she states in the movie that she didn't test every recipe because she didn't have time. If it's true, I wouldn't be at all surprised.

themes: home cooking, the Great Depression, boiled vegetables

1932 Brave New World by Aldous Huxley ★★★

"You can't make tragedies without social instability."

I found this book to be a very interesting dystopia [but written before the word dystopia had been invented]. The device of giving a tour at the beginning in order to explain the world was very helpful, as was the conversation John the "savage" had with the world controller at the end of the book, but it may have made the rest of the writing a little lazy. Overall, the book had a lot of insightful commentary about government control, capitalism, and how easily humans can be influenced/conditioned.

themes: industrialism, human sexuality, mind control

1933 The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas by Gertrude Stein ★★★

"The geniuses came and talked to Gertrude Stein and the wives sat with me."

"In short, I have sat very often and very long with many wives and wives of many geniuses."

Although this book is called an autobiography, it was written by Gertrude Stein as a way to tell her own life story through the lens of her very adoring partner. I went through a big modernism phase in college (I was an English major, so that's not surprising), and since I knew about some of the events and lots of the people mentioned in the book, I found it interesting to learn about backstories and the connections. I hadn't read much of Gertrude Stein's work, besides excerpts from Tender Buttons, which I didn't totally love, but I am interested in checking out her other books now. There were a lot of funny comments about people, especially about women, which Gertrude Stein didn't seem to count herself among (as indicated in the quotes above) and their place in society. One funny thing is that every single time her name is mentioned in the book, it is always written out completely as Gertrude Stein, although other characters went by first or last names only.

themes: modernism, sexism, artists and their moods

1934 Jonah's Gourd Vine by Zora Neale Hurston ★★★

"All his years as pastor at Zion Hope he had felt borne up on a silken coverlet of friendship, but the trial had shown him that he reclined upon a board, thinly disguised." 

This is Zora Neale Hurston's first novel, which clearly does not get much recognition. I read some criticism that the story and the characters weren't as well-developed as Their Eyes Were Watching God, which has truth to it. However, I think the book accomplishes Hurston's purpose in writing about the lives of black people in the South after the abolition of slavery, especially focused around the northern migration and the people who stayed behind. Just like TEWWG, the dialogue is written phonetically, which is a challenge to get into, but adds to the immersive experience.

themes: religion, hypocrisy, the power of love, men are trash

1935 Gaudy Night by Dorothy L. Sayers ★★★★

"That was an admission of equality and she'd not expected it of him. If he conceived of marriage along those lines, then the whole problem would have to be reviewed in that new light. But that scarcely seemed possible. To take such a line and stick to it, he would have to be not a man, but a miracle."

I finished this book and immediately wanted to read it again. Partly, that was because I listened to it on audiobook and in reading some commentary after I finished, I realized that I lost some of the nuance by occasionally losing track of the story while driving, cleaning, etc. This is a mystery book in a series and though it's the most-read and always called the best, the official recommendation is to start at the beginning and read up to it, which I didn't do. Don't make my mistake. The mystery is interesting, but the characters, their relationships, and their ideas are what make this book worthwhile, and that is what builds over the course of the series.

themes: women's independence, intellectualism, the power of love

1936 How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie ★★★

"When dealing with people, let us remember we are not dealing with creatures of logic. We are dealing with creatures of emotion, creatures bristling with prejudices and motivated by pride and vanity."

If you were surprised to find out that this book was published in the 1930s, you are not alone. Many of the stories and examples are so old, but the principles still seem to be relevant today, which is why it's one of the best-selling books of all time. There were places where it felt a little schmoozy (like "a person's name is, to that person, the sweetest and most important sound in any language" or "start with questions to which the other person will answer yes"), but there were also a lot of genuine tips for being a better communicator, collaborator, leader, and friend. Some of my favorite points that I'm honestly trying to implement in my life, including in my teaching, are: give more honest and sincere appreciation and acknowledgment, admit when I'm wrong, and be genuinely interested in other people and show them that by listening to them talk. I honestly would recommend this book for people who are having a hard time dealing with other people, especially in a work environment.

themes: manipulation, the nature of humanity, getting what you want, maybe that's not a bad thing

1937 Out of Africa by Isak Dinesen ★★

"I thought it a painful, a very painful process to be hung upon the pole. I wished that I could have escaped it. Still, many years after, there would be occasions when you find yourself thinking 'Am I to be treated in such a way? I, who have been a brass serpent?'"

White people are the worst. Especially when they're appropriating other cultures. Danish woman Karen Blixen moves to "Africa" (Kenya, but that's barely important to her, as she is very fond of describing and categorizing the continent as a whole) and just loves it. She has a super deep connection with the people there. One example is Kamante, a man who ends up as a cook in her kitchen. He (among others) is described not only repeatedly as a savage but also as a beast and a demon. It's truly shocking to her that he has "natural instinct" for "culinary art." And so continues the whole book. While trying to prove her connection to the land and its people, she repeatedly demonstrates how superior to them she thinks she is. She even explicitly admits in the quote above that it was hard for her to leave and live in the outside world, where she is no longer seen as the savior she believed herself to be. I guess people really love the Meryl Streep movie version of this story, but the book left a terrible taste in my mouth.

themes: racism, white saviors, home

1938 Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier ★★★★

"I could fight the living but I could not fight the dead.... Rebecca would never grow old. Rebecca would always be the same. And she and I could not fight. She was too strong for me."

 This was my favorite book of the decade. It's kind of a mystery/thriller, though not in the traditional sense of waiting till the end of the book to find out whodunit. Rebecca, a character who is absent for the entire book, has a surprising amount of power over everyone, which is spooky but exciting. The descriptions of the house and estate dragged a little bit for me, though I assume that's something a lot of people love about the book. I've heard comparisons to Jane Eyre, which feel more true at the beginning than later on, and I certainly liked the ending a lot more. The characters are all deeply flawed, which made them compelling to me. There were many interesting observations on human nature, which I really like in novels.

themes: child brides, jealousy, deceit, class, fancy English estates

1939 At Swim-Two-Birds by Flann O'Brien ★★★

"As a matter of fact, said the Good Fairy, I do not understand two words of what you have said and I do not know what you are talking about."

This book came highly recommended by many "best book of the century" lists and I have questions. I chose the above quote because while reading much of the text, I agreed with the Good Fairy's sentiment. This book is a story within a story within a story, with possibly more levels. It seemed revolutionary, but in a way that the author didn't really care if the readers got it. I read it with two friends in a book club and one of them said that it would be easier to read now, having already read it. True, but I wouldn't.

themes: modernist literature, chaos, autonomy, people who seem lazy but succeed anyway

I didn't really love the books of the 1930s, which I realized upon reflection may have been because the 1930s was kind of a bleak time and many authors weren't doing their best writing. I'm so late publishing this post that I have already finished more than half of the books for the 1940s and am enjoying them much more, so look forward to that post for more books that I would honestly recommend.