FDR's Alphabet Soup: New Deal America 1932-1939 by Tonya Bolden Ages 14+ 144 pages Knopf January 2010 Hardcover     A first-rate overview of the federal government’s response to the Great Depression, FDR's Alphabet Soup begins by taking the reader immediately into the lives of ordinary people representing the millions of Americans who were completely broke, hungry and desperate for hope. Times were desperate, and radical new ideas were needed to reach out to the American people and support them in their hour of greatest need. Sometimes referred to as “alphabet soup,” the multitude of programs initiated by Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR) addressed the immediate needs of the people by expanding the role of government in ways which infuriated some and drew accusations of Socialism, but also directly helped the common man. The book, although accessible to younger students, is really best read by high school students (or adults) who have a general idea of not only the history of the period but also the macroeconomics of the early 20th century. Organized chronologically, Bolden introduces each program and explains its relevance, relative costs and impact on ordinary people. Each program is initially named and then referred to by its abbreviation in the text. A handy glossary reviews each program for those of us who get lost swimming in the “soup” of programs. The author does an excellent job explaining how politics, racism, public relations, law, labor unions and economics all played critical roles in each program. The value of this book lies not only in the Bolden’s ability to bring the reader directly into the Great Depression and setting these programs within an historical and economic context, but also with the hundreds of photographs, political cartoons and buttons and first-person quotations depicting the human aspects of these programs. These primary sources are invaluable to students as they reflect varying points of view and the political sentiments of the day. Overall, FDR's Alphabet Soup is an excellent complement to the study of the Great Depression, a resource which students will find valuable for background knowledge and research. The book concludes with the results of the programs organized in a timeline format, glossary, notes, selected sources and an index.     web reviews   Kristine Wildner/2010 for curled up with a good kid's book   For grown-up fiction, nonfiction and speculative fiction book reviews, visit our sister site Curled Up With a Good Book (www.curledup.com)