The Reckless Decade

            
            
             Few books portray the "reckless decade" of the 1890s as vividly or as detailed as HW Brand's The Reckless Decade. Filled with stifling detail, intense political drama, and great social/economic analysis, The Reckless Decade by H.W. Brands is an enlightening summary of the conflicts, victories, and turmoil of the 1890s. The book is organized mainly by chronological order, starting from the end of the frontier times of western expansion, to the rise of electrical technology, the overwhelming effects/conflicts of immigration and urbanization, to the great clash of the industrial superpowers, the intense and fierce worker/union movement, the rise of racism and segregation, and the fierce political battle for political dominance in America. From the way the author organizes and it seems that the author's purpose in writing the book not was not only as an informational analysis of the 1890s but also to show how trends in the past can significantly effect our lives in the future. Speaking from a third-person person point of view, Brands offers a concise, objective and genuine view of what really happened during the last decade of the 19th Century.
             The Reckless Decade concentrates on the many social, economical, political, and technological developments and struggles that defined the essence of America in the 1890s. For instance, Brands emphasizes that since the frontier was used by everyday people as an escape from the burdens and pressures of life, the disappearance of the frontier meant that people no longer had an "escape hatch" that they could use if things do not go well for them in their everyday lives. In addition, he states how Morgan's acquisition of Carnegie and Rockefeller's industrial empires combined would eventually set the stage for financiers to truly control the power of the industries and, along with the rise of poverty in large urban areas & the anger of the discontent rural population, would contribute to the later populist and silverist movements.