REPUBLIC OF DETOURS How the New Deal Paid Broke Writers to Rediscover America

The talented Jonathan Yen brings warmth, intelligence, and a storytelling style to his narration of this fine cultural history of the 1930s Federal Writers Project (FWP). His folksy voice and well-paced delivery suit this focused appraisal of the people and program designed to give work—writing state guides—to broke writers. Against all odds, the series produced several hundred titles, including city guides and others, and sponsored writers from Idaho’s indefatigable Vardis Fisher to Richard Wright, Zora Neale Hurston, Nelson Algren, and John Cheever. The director, Henry Alsberg, adroitly managed the far-flung project until running afoul of the Nativist Texas congressman Martin Dies, Jr., who claimed the FWP was “promoting class hatred” and helped usher its demise. This audiobook is a well-crafted journey into our past. A.D.M. © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine [Published: SEPTEMBER 2021]