Do you have old family pictures with no information as to when they were taken? Betty Kreisel Shubet can help with that! In Out-of-Style: a Modern Perspective of How, Why and When Vintage Fashions Evolved she explains what to look for in what the people are wearing that are clues for the 'when'. An interesting history with nice drawings (by the author).

Something from the past that does NOT stir nostalgia would be the homes where young, unwed, pregnant girls were sent in the 1950's and 1960's. Most (but not all) were run by religious groups, some were quite severe, others had a more home like atmosphere, but there was a Code of Silence (names were changed, and only first names ... last names were never used), and the feeling of shame and guilt was strong. Anne Petrie was in one of them, and some thirty years later decided to write a book. She was able to track down six other women who were willing to talk about their experiences in Gone to an Aunt's: Remembering Canada's Homes for Unwed Mothers. Thank goodness times and attitudes have changed.

The Way We Never Were: American Families and the Nostalgia Trap (Revised and Updated Edition), by Stephanie Coontz, was not what I was expecting ... at all. It seems there were never any 'good old days', there were always issues and attitudes that made life less than pleasant for most of the population. A rather depressing read, but still interesting. It looks as if the author has updated it several times now and included both the things she got right as well as wrong in her predictions in an earlier edition. Dense and detailed, yes, but remember, there will be no test at the end. :-)

In 1966 the U.S. Office of Education encouraged the state agencies to write a history of schooling in their area. Washington Schools in the Good Old Days is the result! Five school districts participated and the schools range from one room school houses to bigger elementary schools. You'll recognize many of the same issues we are familiar with today: overcrowding, lack of funding, salaries, etc. Wonderful archival photos make the some what dry text worth it. :-)

In the past you could get pretty much everything from the Sears catalog. From birth to death (including coffins and grave markers), coaches and harnesses to cars, seeds to plows, wigs (including beard wigs for men), fashions for all ages, books, instruments (from fancy pianos and organs to a jew's harp), the new gadget called radio, pharmaceuticals (including, much to my surprise) birth control, the list (and catalog, which used to be HUGE goes on and on! For an interesting look at the time when the Sears catalog was the be all and end all of shopping try The Good Old Days: a History of American Morals and Manners as Seen Through the Sears Roebuck Catalogs, by David L. Cohn.

Reading Hermit With Dog