Bits of Blue Taffeta: Remembering the Forgotten Generation

In Bits of Blue Taffeta: Remembering the Forgotten Generation, author Irene Aldrich brings readers a first-person account of growing up during the Great Depression and her experiences during World War II and in the years following.

Throughout those tumultuous years, she and many others of her generation were still able to miraculously find joy in the midst of insurmountable obstacles–being exposed to poverty, deprivation, hunger, and discrimination and the horrendous accounts of some of the most heinous crimes against humanity imaginable. Despite these difficulties, however, she also witnessed incredible unity among members of the community and a level of patriotism that became unparalleled in history.

Children were forced to grow up quickly as they withstood these rapid and extreme changes to their prior life experiences. After realizing the many changes in the world that were occurring at the time, she began to write her personal account as one member of that forgotten generation–with the hope that those born in later generations will gain further appreciation for the advantages and opportunities they’ve been privileged to have.