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

Citation:

Blumenthal, Karen. Bootleg: Murder, Moonshine, and the Lawless Years of Prohibition. New York: Roaring Brook, 2011. Print.

Summary:

Alcohol and the debates related to drinking have plagued American life for centuries. Bootleg: Murder, Moonshine, and the Lawless Years of Prohibition follows America’s complicated history concerning alcohol from the Pilgrim’s use of hard liquor on the Mayflower to the controversial addition (and ultimate removal) of the eighteenth amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The book provides a detailed look considering both the “wet” and “dry” sides of the issue chronicling how the two sides have clashed over the past few centuries.

Critical Analysis:

Author Karen Blumenthal has written an effective historical timeline recounting the various events that have attributed to the tumultuous history of alcohol and the hard fought battles for and against it. Bootleg: Murder, Moonshine, and the Lawless Years of Prohibition is an engaging work of nonfiction that is an ideal introduction to Prohibition, organized in a manner that is easy to follow. The various drawings, photographs, and documents Blumenthal incorporates throughout the book provide the reader with a visual representation of the time periods covered and add so much to the authenticity of her research. The inclusion of “A Prohibition and Temperance Glossary” is a helpful addition to the book, while the “Bibliography and Source Notes” is thorough and provides a great deal of information useful for those who would like additional sources for research.

One particular aspect of the work that is especially interesting are the various photographs of mementos Blumenthal includes such as campaign buttons, Carrie Nation’s hatchet pin, and science textbooks endorsed by the WCTU. It would be an added bonus to see more of these photographs incorporated. There were only a handful throughout the work and a greater visual representation of the actual artifacts from the temperance movement, for example, would strengthen the historical account.