Readers' rating:
Published Mar 2010
370 pages
Genre: Biography/Memoir
Publication Information
When we read about famous historical events, we may wonder about the firsthand experiences of the people directly involved. What insights could be gained if we could talk to someone who remembered the Civil War, or the battle to win the vote for women, or Thomas Edison's struggles to create the first electric light bulb? Amazingly, many of these experiences are still preserved in living memory by the final survivors of important, world-changing events.
In this unique oral history book, author and historic document specialist Stuart Lutz records the stories told to him personally by people who witnessed many of history's most famous events. Among many others, Lutz interviewed:
The wide-ranging stories involve humor (the 1920 Olympic medalist who stole the original Olympic flag), tragedy (the last survivor of the 1915 Lusitania sinking), heroism (the final Medal of Honor recipient for actions on Pearl Harbor Day), and eyewitnesses to great events (one of the last scientists at the first nuclear chain reaction, and the final Iwo Jima flag raiser).
In more than three-dozen chapters, Lutz blends background information in a lively narrative with the words of the interviewees, so that readers not familiar with the historical episodes described can understand what occurred and the long-term significance of the events.
A book that truly makes the past come alive, The Last Leaf will fascinate not only history buffs but anyone who likes a good story.
"These interviews of the last survivors of historic events offer fascinating insights on the social and cultural history of twentieth-century America. The stories of ordinary people caught up in extraordinary experiences carry a powerful poignancy." - Dr. James McPherson. Princeton University, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Battle Cry of Freedom
"The arcane history bits in Last Leaf are endlessly fascinating. Did you know that FDR's valet was named Arthur Prettyman, or that the last survivor of the Triangle Shirtwaist fire escaped the inferno by following her bosses to safety? On a deeper level, Stuart Lutz delicately conveys the humanity of these 'last leaves,' giving us a profound sense of the whimsy and poignancy of their singular condition." - Gregory Gibson, author of Gone Boy - A Walkabout
"The Last Leaf is perhaps one of the most pivotal and valuable references on the American experience in publication. The stories contained in this book are those of the last witnesses and the last first hand accounts of global and American history and is a must have for anyone seeking to comprehend how our world has been forged." - David DeJonge, historian and documentarian of the world's last World War I veterans
This information about The Last Leaf was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Stuart Lutz is the owner of Stuart Lutz Historic Documents, Inc., a firm that buys, sells, and appraises historic documents, letters, and rare manuscripts. He has written for American Heritage and Civil War Times, and he has appeared on National Public Radio.
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