Running Board Memories

Book excerpt: "Running Board Memories" is a collection of the authentic experiences of a young girl growing up during the 1920s and 1930s. With the country in economic turmoil due to the effects of the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression, her family is initially successful in evading the destitution of others by taking to the road. They target areas not yet wiped out by the loss of income to find consumers of their products, using a bartering system when customers are unable to pay with cash. For several years they are able to not only make a living, but are able to enjoy their travels in the states of Arkansas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, and Texas. When the situation becomes so bad that no one has any money and everyone seems destined for the "poorhouse," Millie and her family are forced to return to their farm in rural Arkansas to "ride out" the hard times. Her stories are then of their day-to-day struggle to survive, with lessons in life that have guided the author through nearly a hundred years of life.