Remembering Woolworth's: A Nostalgic History of the World's Most Famous Five-and-Dime

Very interesting detailed history of Woolworth's! A++++

Working class Americans once had a place to shop with their families where they were made to feel important, even rich. They could dine inexpensively at the lunch counter and spend a morning or afternoon just browsing through the most fabulous Five-and-Dime store in the world. The rich had Tiffany's and Macy's. Everyone else had Woolworth's.Some Sunday mornings I still walk through the aisles of that familiar building with the Red-Font which bears the Woolworth's name. It is no longer Woolworth's, of course, but this only adds to the nostalgia while looking for Coke items or other bits of Americana to take home. The building is a nostalgic downtown landmark here in Bakersfield and has been converted into an antique's store. It still feels like a Woolworth's inside, however, even the famous lunch counter remaining to add to our sense of stepping into the past.This marvelous book by Karen Plunkett-Powell will bring back fond memories for those not fortunate enough to still have that connection to America's past to enjoy. It is filled with sentimental remembrances from children who shopped with their parents or grandparents, or had an ice cream soda with the girl they later married. It is a book filled with recollections from those who bought all their Christmas presents for friends and family at America's Christmas store, and even some who worked at Woolworth's, personalizing a great success story.It is that mix of personal nostalgia and historical narrative about this most wonderful of stores which separate this book from others of its ilk. The book is augmented by color and black and white pictures of stores in America and abroad, and Woolworth's products and collectibles. Even photos of Hollywood fan magazines showing the retailer's connection to early silent films are included in a book both fun and informative. While dealing with the business transitions and social and economic changes which finally saw the last store of this greatest of companies fade into the sunset, it is the nostalgia most people will find irresistible.Not just the story of Frank Woolworth and how he built a retail empire by offering customers quality merchandise at low prices while making them feel special, it is very much a story of America's nostalgic past. Woolworth's was everyone's store. It belongs to our past and is imbedded into our memories. Any girl who ever bought a bottle of Evening in Paris and any young man who ever enjoyed its fragrance while sitting next to her in a movie house is connected to that icon of retailers, Woolworth's. I highly recommend this fabulous trip down memory lane. And if you're ever in Bakersfield you might want to stop at the Red-Font once again and remember how America once was.

Nice scholastic work on the history of Woolworths,would have liked to seen more pics, What was on the shelves of the stores,rememberances of people who went there,as wall as if they could have had pictues from old sales papers would have been nice.

This is really a marvelous book. I am glad that I purchased it in hardback instead of on Kindle because it is so good, but I recommend reading it in whatever form you can! This book brought back so many delightful memories of my childhood, but is also a wonderful social history of Woolworth's and the development of the "Five and Dime". Along with the nostalgic memories are stories about Woolworth's during World Wars I and II. The Woolworth lunch counter that sits in the Smithsonian and it's role in the civil rights movement is discussed in detail. The book includes a thorough biography of F.W. Woolworth and his rise from rags to riches. This is an extraordinary book. I am glad it is still available on Kindle, but wish it were still in print. If you've ever bought red wax lips, or tried your luck at popping a balloon to get a one cent banana split, or brought a plastic bag with a goldfish in it at Woolworth's, you should really enjoy this read!

Book came in excellent condition. Very interseting and i highly recommend this book for people like myself that enjoy history. I would deal with this seller anytime

A very interesting biography on the life of Frank Winfield Woolworth and on the establishment and growth of his 5& 10 Empire. It is nice to read about the way of life over 150 years ago and how enterprising young men could turn a dream into an empire. This is a very good read.

Not as clean as I thoughtPages creasedSmells like smoke

I have not read the book yet but I'm sure I'll enjoy it. The old time photos are nice. I bought this book used from a book seller on Amazon and I missed seeing the line reading "Former Library Book", so there is some major distortion and a twist in the spine from being jammed into a very tight book shelf.If I had seen that it was a discarded Library book I would of passed this seller up. The price was pretty low, so that is probably what drew me to it. I wasn't about to spend $79.00 for it elsewhere.