Ten Lost Years, 1929-1939: Memories of the Canadians Who Survived the Depression

by Barry Broadfoot

Hundreds of ordinary Canadians tell their own stories in this book. They tell them in their own words, and the impact is astonishing. As page after page of unforgettable stories rolls by, it is easy to see why this book sold 300,000 copies and why a successful stage play that ran for years was based on them.

The stories, and the 52 accompanying photographs, tell of an extraordinary time. One tells how a greedy Maritime landlord ho tried to raise a widow's rent was tarred and gravelled; another how rape by the boss was part of a waitress's job. Other stories show Saskatchewan families watching their farms turn into deserts and walking away from them; or freight-trains black with hoboes clinging to them, criss-crossing the country in search of work; or a man stealing a wreath for his own wife's funeral.

Throughout this portrait of the era before Canada had a social safety net, there are amazing stories of what Time magazine called "human tragedy and moral triumph during the hardest of times." In the end, this is an inspiring, uplifting book about bravery, one you will not forget.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Canada, Biography, Historical

480 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1973

About the author

Barry Broadfoot was an interviewer and history writer.

His historical research consisted of interviewing various Canadians from all over the country about their memories of their lives during specific historical periods such as the Great Depression and World War II.

In 1997, Broadfoot was made a Member of the Order of Canada, Canada's highest civilian honour.

Reviews

[Andrew Stewart · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ll rate it four stars for what it contains, rather than fewer for its omissions.

This is a collection of interviews, an oral history of the depression years, Studs Terkel style. In fact just three years prior Terkel had published what looks to me like pretty much the same book (Hard Times) but from American perspectives.

I enjoy this format and this book was informative and covered most of the bases. However a 9 page (of 390) chapter on the challenges indigenous peoples experienced during this period is embarrassingly deficient. That chapter is titled “They Didn’t Consider Indians As People”. This is a quote from one of the interviews, obviously the author didn’t feel that way, but he doesn’t seem to have thought they were worth interviewing either. I would have been interested in learning about the impact on reserves for instance. Likewise the arctic is completely ignored in this book, I recall one mention of Yellowknife.

Those complaints aside I enjoyed this book a lot. The wisdom of common people.

[Rory McCreight · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have now completed my old high school teacher's book list

[Bill · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this should be required reading for all of us who did not live through the Great Depression

It is a collection of hundreds of interviews of people who lived the Depression. It is told in their own words which sometimes caused me to reread a few sentences to understand what was said.

Being Canadian and having grown up in Vancouver and Regina, it had particular significance. It is interesting to me that my Mother certainly was a product of the depression---never throwing anything out, watching every penny. Surprisingly, my Father was the very opposite---perhaps it was his rebellion for all the tough years that he left behind

[Czarny Pies · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ten Lost Years est probablement le plus grand chef d'oeuvre de l'histoire orale Canadienne. Comprendre l'histoire c'est etudier les statistiques et lire les lettres des grands chefs politique. Il faut aussi essayer de comprendre la vie quotidienne des petits gens. Ten Lost Years remplit cette mission a la merveille.

Ce livre plaira enormemnet a tous Ceux qui veulent savoir ce qui etait cla vie de tous les jours au Canada pendant la Grande Depression.

Broadfoot est sans doute un passé maître de l'art de l'entrevue. Il impose jamais son point de vue. Il permet toujours aux gens de raconter ce qu'ils raconter de la maniere qu'ils veulent le raconter. Il fait si bien son travail que le lecteur reconnait un personne distincte dans chaque histoire.

Les histoires sont tellement bien compose qu'au moins deux pieces ont été cree a partir de textes tiree de Ten Lost Years. La premiere fois a été au Toronto Workshop Theatre en 1974. En 2012, le Seacoast Theatre Company de Vancouver a monté un autre piece de theatre compose des extraits tires de Ten Lost Years. Il existe possiblement d'autres.

Ten Lost Years est un grand classique Canadien qui parle d'une experience qui a touché tous les Canadiens d'un bout a l'autre du pays.

[Ml Lalonde · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book captures the memories of a cross-section of Canadians who, like my Father, lived through the Depression years in Canada. I read this book for the first time in my teens and took some comfort in again reading about the resilience of my fellow citizens during a terrible patch in our country’s economic history. Plain wisdom from ordinary people. The best kind.

[Virginia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I took almost a year to read this, mostly a page or two at a time. The stories are all shared pretty much as they were told to Barry Broadfoot, so it reads as a transcription of interviews (which I suspect they may be!)

This is a time capsule of people in their 50s-70s talking in the 1970s about the 1930s. It's fascinating!

More...colourful than a textbook, let's say. Lots of opinions and spirited comments about R. B. Bennett, Mackenzie King, and others. A lot of the stories are in BC and the Prairies, and a good number from the Maritimes. There are several dollops of racist epithets throughout, often anti-Semitic and anti-Ukrainian in nature.

I didn't know that Ontario had sent train loads of goods (clothing etc) to the Prairies during the drought. I didn't know about relief camps. There is a LOT I didn't know, and I now want to read more about it.

Also, it seems privileged conservative types have always called poor people wanting food & shelter for everyone "communists." Plus ca change...

[Heather Angel · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite of the series, Ten Lost Years covers so much History across Canada during the Depression it really brought home the struggles that my parents and grandparents had to endure through those years~ The stories will, at times, make you want to cry and others will make you laugh out loud. Told and written 'in the raw' as they were told to Barry, this book is a pleasure to read over and over.

[Sean Cummings · Rating 5 out of 5]

The definitive narrative on The Great Depression and life on the Canadian Prairie. A must read for anyone with an interest in Canadian history.

[Ron · Rating 4 out of 5]

Superb oral history of the Depression in Canada. Real stories from real people. A major bestseller in the early 1970's here.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

We bought this book at a book sale at our library years ago. I've picked through it from time to time but finally found myself in a position where I could read the whole thing. I gather the author crossed the country to interview people who had lived through the depression. From that came a wide variety of experiences. Tragic, humorous, bizarre, candid and fascinating. You don't need to have lived through this time or be Canadian to appreciate these stories.

[Clayton Bye · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book when I was a young man. It affected me deeply, giving me a lasting appreciation for what I have. I don't believe anyone can read the stories Broadfoot collected from people who actually lived through the great depression without being changed by the experience. In my opinion, Ten Lost Years is a must read.

[Christin Marcotte · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful book about the trials and tribulations of the people who lived through this harrowing time in Canada. Barry Broadfoot populates this history with the sometimes kind sometimes cruel actions during this period. My parents told me tales of their experiences which were borne out by Broadfoot's research and eloquent prose. A must read!!

[Erin L · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the stories in this book. They were told in the words of the people the author spoke with to gather histories and it gave the book a sense of place and character that was unexpected.

Having heard a few stories growing up in Saskatchewan, it was nice to read more experiences. What an awful time.

[Lynda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting to read something of Canadian history for a change!

[Clint Coffey · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an amazing read, even the second time around. I first read this book as a teenager in the 70's, the paperback copy belonged to my parents, who were Depression survivors.
Anyone who wants to understand "Boomers" like me should read this book, as the the folks who share their stories here are the people who raised us. I was amazed at how I could see the values and attitudes that I was raised with are still with me, and to see their origins in the Great Depression. Thrift with money, hating waste, planning for the future, personal responsibility, contempt for whining and complaining...the Depression instilled these ideas in my parents and their generation and they passed them on to us.
There may be a few "tall tales" in here, but 99% of it rings true. The author presents the stories in an authentic manner, and some modern readers may be shocked by some of the "politically incorrect" attitudes and language. I think it is well worth the risk - this is real history, at its most powerful and basic. A Canadian classic.

[Joel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Drawing on a lot of interviews, Broadfoot presents an unflinching & revealing picture of what happened to vulnerable workers & families in Canada during the Depression. But the obvious implication, I'd say, is that by reaction the tragic plight during these years yielded the beginnings and impetus for Canada's well known "big heart" and the roll-out of social services and a "social safety net".

[Noriko · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having only heard whispers of the Great Depression, I found this to be an informative and harrowing read. I wish I had been taught more about this in school. I also wish I had thought to ask my grandparents more questions about it when they were alive. I'm sure they had similar stories. I'll never know - like many who survived that horrible decade, they never spoke of it.

[Derek Falkowsky · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was really good. The stories of real people from real peoples experiences was fascinating. There are sad stories, funny stories, happy stories, and on and on with a wide array of stories from every class of citizen from every walk of life.

[Johann Thalakada · Rating 5 out of 5]

1930s Canada brought alive! A must read.

[Sandy Baptie · Rating 5 out of 5]

An important collection of true-life stories of those who experienced the Great Depression firsthand.

[Pat · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book made a big impression on me as a young adult. This is history told by people who lived through it and saw things I never want to see or feel and still it is hopeful.

[Gloria DeVilliers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Re- reading for the hundreds of original stories by such an array of people.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed reading all the different views