Bootleg: Murder, Moonshine, and the Lawless Years of Prohibition

Blumenthal, Karen. Bootleg: Murder, Moonshine, and the Lawless Years of Prohibition. Roaring Book Press, 2011. 154 pages, $18.99 ISBN: 9781596434493 (trade)

Plot Summary:

Bootleg starts with a brief history of alcohol in America beginning with the Pilgrims who brought beer and liquor to America on the Mayflower to describing what types of drinks were popular in different regions and cultural groups.  Blumenthal continues by describing early temperance movements spearheaded by Senator Shepard Morris, groups like the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) and extremists such as Carrie Nation and her famous hatchetation of saloons across the Midwest.  Dries rejoiced when the 18^th Amendment to the Constitution was passed outlawing the sale of alcoholic beverages.  Citizens were still allowed to have and drink liquor in their own homes and many stockpiled alcoholic beverages in preparation for the new law.  Even with the 18^th Amendment and undercover Federal Prohibition agents, speakeasies and illegal stills popped up all over the country.  Rum running, the illegal smuggling of alcohol across U.S. borders became a common and dangerous practice.  Prohibition did not keep people from drinking or turn America into the moral, upright society the Drys hoped for, but rather provided the perfect situation for gangsters like Al Capone to come into power.  After over a decade of prohibition the 18^th Amendment was overturned with the passing of the 21^st Amendment under the presidency of FDR.

Critical Review:

Blumenthal’s Bootleg is a well researched book that at is also very readable with a smooth flowing narrative.  Alcohol has been present in human societies for millennia, for good or bad and has an interesting and rich history in America that is often glossed over in U.S. History classes and textbooks.  Blumenthal’s narrative explains that dangers of alcohol, but also how outright banning the substance was just as bad, if not worse for American society.  Never have so many citizens outright flaunted constitutional law, giving rise to smuggling and gang violence. 

Genre:

Nonfiction-history

Interest Level:

Grades 9 and up

Similar Books:

Drink: a Cultural History of Alcohol Iain Gately

The Big Deal about Alcohol: What Teens Need to Know about Drinking Marilyn McClellan

Subjects/Themes:

Alcohol consumption

Prohibition

Bootlegging

Awards/Honors:

ALA Notable Children’s Book 2012

Booklist Editor’s Choice Books for Youth 2011

Kirkus Best Books for Young Adults 2011

School Library Journal Best Books 2011

YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults 2012

Annotation:

Bootleg is an account of the history of alcohol in American and the events that led up to the passing of the 18^th Amendment prohibiting the sale of alcohol in the United States.

Book Talking Ideas:

Bootleg is a great book for anyone who enjoys history.  Blumenthal creates a riveting narrative describing the relationship America has had with alcohol one of the most used and abused substances and the lengths people would go to access their favorite beverage during prohibition.  Explore the dangerous and glamorous world of the speakeasies and rum runners of the roaring 20’s.

Why I chose to include this book:

I chose to include this book because it details an interesting period in American history, one that is often glossed over in history classes.