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Nothin' But Blue Skies: The Heyday, Hard Times, And Hopes Of America's Industrial Heartland (2013)

by Edward McClelland(Favorite Author)

3.97 of 5 Votes: 3

ISBN

1608195295 (ISBN13: 9781608195299)

languge

English

genre

History & Biography

publisher

Bloomsbury Press

review 1: I read this book expecting something similar to Richard Longworth's Caught in the Middle. It's not that, and that's okay. It does lack a solid structure to define where you're going, but I suppose the Rust Belt lacks that as well.I enjoyed the read, but could have used more of a setup from the author on how the book would lay out. It's part-travelogue, part-history text, mixed with some pontification on what the future might hold.The book doesn't touch much on Milwaukee, which was a bit of a personal bummer (I'm always interested what outsiders think). It's quite Michigan centric, given the author's background that's too be expected (but should perhaps be explained in the intro).
review 2: Ed McClelland’s “Nothin’ But BLUE SKIES” is a neat little treati... morese on the Rust Belt – how it earned its moniker and how it got that way. Basically it is a hyper-kinetic serial description of the area – from Flint, to Lansing, to Detroit, to Cleveland, to the East Side of Chicago, to Homestead (Pa.), to Decatur (Il.), to Syracuse (NY), to Buffalo, and back to the Michigan cities. In this wide-ranging assessment the author focuses on the growth and decline of the steel and automobile industries, and the impact of intransigent management and militant labor. While the view is often cursory – the tale is more journalistic summary than academic analysis – the author’s writing is crisp and entertaining at all times. This book would appeal mostly to readers reared in any of the named cities or in the Midwest in general … readers who come from other areas of the country may not pick up on the inside jokes and asides of the tales. One especially interesting chapter gives the author’s take on why Chicago did not suffer the same problems seen in Detroit and Cleveland. The story brings in anecdotes on the impact of air conditioners and drugs, and even spends a few pages trashing both Michael Moore and Roger Smith. The tale touches on how America tried to accommodate the Japanese invasion in automobiles - attempting to match Japanese efficiency, and noting how GM watched Toyota grab the market in hybrid vehicles.But after all is said and done, this is really a story of the love-hate relationship between General Motors and Michigan. How capitalist GM would use up and dump cities like Flint when manufacturing realities changed, and labor unions would squeeze out every employee benefit they could get while they had leverage. Was management that poor? Did unions overplay their hands? While both the company and the unions get credit for creating the great middle class, they also share in the blame for driving the days of plenty away. Just maybe there aren’t any answers … just maybe manufacturing was destined to reach this confrontation anyway – McClelland doesn’t offer an opinion. less

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