michael w

The hook to this story began when she said what her grandmother would say at a time like this. That makes the reader want to keep reading to find out what story her grandmother would tell. Ann Banks demonstrated her interest in the power of storytelling that she spent a year in the Library of Congress reading interviews of Americans and how they got through the Great Depression. She transitions to the present and tells us how we need to once again create stories, but this time our own stories, so we can share our experiences through this economically difficult time and hope for a better future.
“One morning my grandmother and her colleagues arrived at the office to discover that someone had chiseled the silver dollar right out of the floor.”
This quote shows how tough the times were, and how desperate people were to gain money.

“Blanche ended up losing her house, her car and all the money she had saved for my father’s education. Those things, though, she seldom mentioned.”
This quote demonstrates how emotionally difficult those times were.
“That is how I came to find myself spending a year in a dimly lit storage room in the Library of Congress, sorting through thousands of interviews with ordinary Americans telling of how they survived the Great Depression.”
This shows how interested she is in the stories of the people that experienced the Great Depression, enough to spend a year always in the Library of Congress.

“”my face burnt like fire, for I knowed I was gettin’ tested.” ”
This tells you how hard it was financially when she was tempted with a five dollar bill in front of her and her face started to burn with temptation.