"The Darkest Year: The American Home Front 1941-1942" eBook was published in 2019 and was written by Willaim K. Klingaman. Mr. Klingaman has published more than 10 books. 

I categorize this novel as ‘G. The book is the story of Americans on the home front in the year following the attack on Perl Harbor. While some of the military engagements are mentioned, the book focuses on what was going on at home.

How did we deal with shortages and rationing? How was the shift from a peacetime economy to full war material production handled? How did these early days of the war affect life in the US? 

I enjoyed the 11.5+ hours I spent reading this 371-page non-fiction account of life in 1942 America. While non-fiction, this book was easy to read. It brought out several things I had not been aware of. So many mistakes were made by the military and the administration. I like the selected cover art. I give this novel a 5 out of 5.

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People who think that Americans were united behind the war effort during World War 2 will be set straight by this fascinating, eye-opening look at the American home front during the first year of the war. Focusing on the year from Pearl Harbor, December 7, 1941, to December 7, 1942, the author examines all aspects of American life and how they were impacted by the war, with a particular emphasis on areas where the populace disagreed with, or went even further, such as rationing and hoarding.

However, the best parts of this highly readable, and always compelling book, focused on the little things a reader might not think of. How weather forecasts were vague, so as not to give information away to the enemy. Even sports announcers could not say that a ballgame had been rained out.

This riveting, outstanding, well-written book will hold a top place on my list of favorite books of 2019. It's one I'd highly recommend to those who love to read about American history.

America during WWII's first year has much to teach us

Dark times seems to bring out the worst in Americans. Despite all the outward displays of unity after 9/11, there were calls to round up people of Middle Eastern descent. Members of the Sikh religion, whose men grow long beards and wear turbines but have nothing remotely to do with
the radical fundamentalists who attacked the United States, found themselves the subject of frequent violence. This remains true today.
In that sense, little has changed since the days immediately following the attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec.

7, 1941. People of Chinese descent, happy that the United States finally would enter the war against Japan, often found themselves being mistaken for Japanese and attacked.
The internment of Americans of Japanese descent was not the faul of Franklin Roosevelt alone. He was reacting to enormous pressure from many Americans, including prominent politicians and members of the media. Their fears overcame constitutional guarantees and the essence of what American freedom stood for.
But dark times also eventually led the nation to gather its strength and rise to meet the challenge. At least, that is what happened in World War II, even if it didn’t start out that way.
In his latest book, “The Darkest Year: The American Homefront, 1941–1942,” William K. Klingaman describes an America long forgotten in the euphoria of victory and the storied tales of the “greatest generation.”
Today, Americans rightly stand and applaud as the now frail soldiers who once fought in this epic global struggle come to Washington, D.C. as part of so-called “honor flights.” Honoring these people with gratitude is entirely appropriate.
The danger, however, is that we assume, three-quarters of a century later, that the war’s outcome was inevitable. Klingaman’s book reminds us that the struggle -- the battle against doubts, and the way obstacles can expose the nation’s own weaknesses, prejudices and errors -- can be just as instructive, and perhaps more so.
The United States didn’t fare well militarily in 1942. It suffered serious losses. Merchant ships were sunk by enemy submarines not far from American shores. Japan controlled nearly all of the Pacific. On the American continent, prominent people fretted that Americans weren’t taking the conflict serious enough; that arts and entertainment hadn’t struck the right tones; that Americans weren’t fit for battle; and that manufacturing wasn’t keeping up with war demands.
Meanwhile, racial conflicts were doing as much harm to the cause as any of these. African-Americans were shut out of defense work, where their help could have helped satisfy demands. And Americans were jittery. What may have been merely some weather balloons passing over California set off needless air raid alarms and prompted anti-aircraft fire that caused damage to civilians.
Americans in 1942 came face-to-face with their nation’s own vulnerabilities, and with the notion that victory was anything but inevitable.
Klingaman’s highly readable book uses a variety of sources to recreate a moment in time that has become lost in the narrative of World War II. It was an important time, filled with lessons for future generations in a land that always seems to struggle to keep pace with its own ideals.
The America of 2019 is different in many ways from that of 1942. The enemies it faces are different, as well. And yet it’s hard to read “The Darkest Year” without wondering whether today’s Americans would repeat much of what happened 77 years ago if faced with the same type of epic struggle.
Whether this generation would have what it takes to overcome those problems the way the “greatest generation” did is an open question.

When I think of America's involvement in World War II, my mind goes automatically to our initial involvement in Europe though my mind knows that our stake in the outcome of the battle's in the orient were engaged, first. And as a baby boomer, I had not realized the class and racial problems were as bad as it must have been before the War. I tend to picture them as they were in the 50's and 60's - still bad but not quite so awful as Klingaman pictures them for us as we geared up for battles across the seas. I trust William K. Klingaman explicitly, however as a man with a firm eye on the ways of the world, so am grateful for this look into America's darkest year. I hope we can all learn something from it.

I received a free electronic copy of this history of hometown, U.S.A. from December 6, 1941 through the following year from Netgalley, William K. Klingaman, and St. Martin's Press in exchange for an honest review. Thank you all for sharing your hard work with me.

I was interested to read “The Darkest Year” by William K. Klingaman in order to understand exactly what the American people endured and suffered during WWII. Although this book provided a psychological study of the citizens of a nation of war, I found it very difficult to follow. Also, my perception of what life might have been like during that time was totally destroyed. I was under the impression that the citizens of the United States did everything possible to support their governments during this time. I was mistaken. The human conditions of greed, selfishness, and self-preservation to the detriment of others was prevalent in both countries. My fairy-tale theories of this “romantic”, at least to me, time in history were dashed. I did not finish this book because of that. It made my love of historical WWII fiction seem childish and unreal.

History at its best Hometown USA during Ww2 .The people pulling together helping each other cope survive my type of book .#netgalley the darkest year #st.Martinsbooks.

The usual view of the American home front during WW2 is one of a united people efficiently pulling together as one. This book, as opposed to the many others that have been published on the subject, demonstrably proves that was not the case. Self interest, racism, sexism and inefficiency were pervasive . So was the influence of a bloated federal bureaucracy often working at cross purposes within its own structure. The government did not trust the people with the truth about how badly the war was going and as a consequence the people mistrusted what little they did learn from the government. It really was the darkest year and this book on the whole does well in telling that period's unique story.

However, the story is told from the proverbial view from 10,000 feet. Information garnered from diaries, family stories, interviews would have given the book the sense of liveliness intimacy and personality that it lacks.

This was a very interesting look at the Homefront during World War II. I am fascinated by this time in history and this book did not disappoint. With all the difficulties of,just living, working and all the shortages that everyone had to put up with, they still cared about one another and did all they could to help the war effort. I highly recommend this book.