February 16, 2013

Pick of the Day: The Dustbowl (DVD)

Black and white photo of dust storm

The Dustbowl. 2 DVDs. 4 hrs. Prod. by The Dust Bowl Film Project. Dist. by PBS Dist. 2012. ISBN 978-1-608883-718-2. $24.99.
Gr 9 Up–Ken Burns, whose name is synonymous with the highest quality of documentary filmmaking, has turned his camera’s eye to the environmental and economic catastrophe that struck America’s heartland in the 1930s. After detailing the calamity’s prelude involving the easy credit available to farmers and the general lack of respect for the ecology of the land, the production methodically [...]

Pick of the Day: The First Ladies (DVD)

DVD cover of First Ladies portraits

The First Ladies. 2 DVDs. 7 hrs. PBS Dist. 2012. ISBN 978-1-60883-724-3. $34.99.
Gr 7 Up–Five of the most influential and controversial First Ladies are profiled in this production. The segments on Dolley Madison and Eleanor Roosevelt feature narration accompanied by photographs and re-enactments of historic events. The biographies of Lady Bird Johnson, Betty Ford, and Nancy Reagan are principally first person narratives that also incorporate commentary by historians, relatives, and friends with video footage of the time. Dolley Madison is considered our nation’s [...]