One Summer: America, 1927

Summary

In "One Summer: America, 1927," Bill Bryson masterfully recreates the atmosphere of one of the most vibrant and contradictory periods in American history. The summer of 1927 unfolds before the reader as a kaleidoscope of events, where the rapid rise of jazz and the era’s boundless optimism are set against the roar of airplane engines, the fever of baseball records, and an air charged with the spirit of great achievements and unexpected upheavals. Bryson weaves into his narrative the fate of Charles Lindbergh, who made the first solo transatlantic flight, tells of the construction of a giant dam and the rise of Al Capone’s gangster empire, the explosive growth of Hollywood, and the first steps of television. Through these stories, the author reveals not only a chronicle of events but also the inner pulse of a time when America, gripped by a thirst for change, teetered between bold dreams and anxious anticipation of the future.