You Must Purchase the History Book, "The Fifties"

David Halberstam's The Fifties was the most entertaining 700-page history book I have ever read. Much of the charm comes from  Halberstam's style. A trained journalist and experienced writer, he glued together the book by writing biographies of the most important political, economic, and cultural figures of the decade.

The book lacks a table of contents, so I will provide one, giving you a taste of the breadth and depth of the book.

One: Robert Taft, The Hiss Case, Dean Acheson, and the 1948 Election
Two: Harry Truman, J Robert Oppenheimer
Three: Joe McCarthy, Mike Hammer
Four: The Korean War
Five: Douglas MacArthur in Korea
Six: Edward Teller and The Hydrogen Bomb
Seven: MacArthur's Downfall, Matthew Ridgway
Eight: Alfred Sloan, Harley Earl, and General Motors
Nine: Bill Levitt
Ten: Eugene Ferkauf
Eleven:. McDonald's
Twelve: Holiday Inn
Thirteen: Radio to TV
Fourteen:. Kefauver
Fifteen: Television
Sixteen: 1952 Campaigns
Seventeen: 1952 Campaign and Advertising
Eighteen: Ike Biography
Nineteen: Brando, Kazan, Williams
Twenty: Alfred Kinsey
Twenty One: The Pill
Twenty Two: The Beats
Twenty Three: Nixon biography
Twenty Four: Oppenheimer and JE Hoover
Twenty Five: Coup in Iran
Twenty Six:  Dulles Brothers and Coup in Guatemala
Twenty Seven: New Look Foreign Policy
Twenty Eight: The Warren Court
Twenty Nine: Civil Rights in Mississippi
Thirty:  Blacks in the South and the Cotton Picker
Thirty One:  Elvis Presley
Thirty Two:  GM
Thirty Three: Advertising
Thirty Four: Television Shows
Thirty Five: C Wright Mills
Thirty Six: Rosa Parks and MLK
Thirty Seven: Marilyn Monroe
Thirty Eight: Paperbacks
Thirty Nine: Postwar Femininity
Forty: The Pill (2)
Forty One:  American Space Program
Forty Two:  Foreign Cars
Forty Three: Quiz Shows
Forty Four: Little Rock
Forty Five: U-2 Flights and Ike's Legacy
Forty Six:  Fidel Castro and 1960 Election

Buy it! You can get a used copy for a little over a dime plus shipping.