Tommy: The Gun That Changed America

by Karen Blumenthal

Overview

John Taliaferro Thompson had a mission: to develop a lightweight, fast-firing weapon that would help Americans win on the battlefield. His Thompson submachine gun could deliver a hundred bullets in a matter of seconds—but didn't find a market in the U.S. military. Instead, the Tommy gun became the weapon of choice for a generation of bootleggers and bank-robbing outlaws, and became a deadly American icon. Following a bloody decade—and eighty years before the mass shootings of our own time—Congress moved to take this weapon off the streets, igniting a national debate about gun control. Critically-acclaimed author Karen Blumenthal tells the fascinating story of this famous and deadly weapon—of the lives it changed, the debate it sparked, and the unprecedented response it inspired.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781626720855
Publisher:	Roaring Brook Press
Publication date:	06/30/2015
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	241
Lexile:	1180L (what's this?)
File size:	15 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	12 - 18 Years

About the Author

Karen Blumenthal (1959-2020) was a financial journalist and editor whose career included five years with The Dallas Morning News and twenty-five with The Wall Street Journal—where her work helped earn the paper a Pulitzer Prize for its breaking news coverage of the September 11, 2001 attacks—before becoming an award-winning children’s non-fiction book writer.

Three of her books, Hillary Rodham Clinton: A Woman Living History, Steve Jobs: The Man Who Thought Different, and Bootleg: Murder, Moonshine, and the Lawless Years of Prohibition, were finalists for the YALSA Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults Award.

Karen was also the author of Six Days in October: The Stock Market Crash of 1929 (named a Sibert Honor Book), Let Me Play: The Story of Title IX (winner of the Jane Addams Children’s Book Award), Tommy: The Gun That Changed America, Bonnie and Clyde: The Making of a Legend, and Jane Against the World: Roe v. Wade and the Fight for Reproductive Rights.

Editorial Reviews

Lively prose, well-selected photographs, and thorough source notes round out this fine work. A gripping look at guns, gangsters, and finding the 'right balance between individual freedoms and community safety'.” —Kirkus Reviews, starred review

“[An] accessible social history, which encompasses military weaponry, gangster warfare, and gun-control legislation.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review

“Peppered with action-filled scenes and period photographs...This thoroughly researched, compulsive read is another Blumenthal winner. A bang-up look at American history.” —Booklist, starred review

“Blumenthal breathes life into this seemingly off-putting subject. . . this action-packed title will hold the attention of reluctant readers and history buffs alike.” —School Library Journal, starred review

“In this biography of a gun and the times in which it lived, Blumenthal traces the Thompson submachine gun, a.k.a. the Tommy. . . With thorough research and impeccable documentation, [Blumenthal] shows the complexity of gun culture, leaving more questions than answers concerning contemporary use and misuse of firearms and the future of Second Amendment battles.” —Horn Book

“A great story well told.” —The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

From the Publisher

★ 06/01/2015
Gr 6 Up—The history of the Thompson submachine gun is the story of a tumultuous period in American history, marked by Prohibition, the Great Depression, two world wars, and violence. Originally developed by John Thompson as a lightweight, automatic rifle to be used by American soldiers, the Tommy gun was invented in 1918—too late for mass distribution during World War I—and wasn't officially adopted by the U.S. Army until World War II. Very quickly, however, the gun that was "built for the battlefield, turned loose on the American streets" became popular with gangsters, bank robbers, strike busters, and others who appreciated its compact size and ability to spray hundreds of bullets in a matter of seconds. Attempts to limit distribution of such a powerful weapon to law-enforcement and military personnel were stymied and, in some cases, opposed by groups who supported the right to bear arms. A discussion of the development of gun control legislation is woven throughout the book, and an extensive bibliography and source notes are appended. Blumenthal breathes life into this seemingly off-putting subject, relating individual cases in which the Tommy gun made history and delving into the exciting tales of notorious gangsters while still maintaining an unbiased, objective approach. The book's many photographs and illustrations add to its appeal. VERDICT This action-packed title will hold the attention of reluctant readers and history buffs alike.—MaryAnn Karre, West Middle School, Binghamton, NY

School Library Journal

Maggi-Meg Reed flavors her nonfiction narration with lilts that lend drama to the story of the Thompson submachine gun (Tommy gun) in America in the 1920s and ‘30s. Reed first turns her attention to John Thompson, a Spanish-American army officer who believed the military needed a more efficient weapon during WWI. Later, Reed notes the inventor’s dismay when the weapon finds its way into illegal use and popularity with gangsters like Al Capone. Quotations make the nonfiction lively, and Reed embeds these with expression, aptly representing characters ranging from gangsters to lawmen. Personalities and events that shaped history unfold. The epilogue speaks to current issues about gun rights and concerns. S.W. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine

JANUARY 2023 - AudioFile

Maggi-Meg Reed flavors her nonfiction narration with lilts that lend drama to the story of the Thompson submachine gun (Tommy gun) in America in the 1920s and ‘30s. Reed first turns her attention to John Thompson, a Spanish-American army officer who believed the military needed a more efficient weapon during WWI. Later, Reed notes the inventor’s dismay when the weapon finds its way into illegal use and popularity with gangsters like Al Capone. Quotations make the nonfiction lively, and Reed embeds these with expression, aptly representing characters ranging from gangsters to lawmen. Personalities and events that shaped history unfold. The epilogue speaks to current issues about gun rights and concerns. S.W. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine

JANUARY 2023 - AudioFile

★ 2015-04-01
John T. Thompson created the submachine gun that bore his name but was distressed when the "impressive little killing machine" he intended for war became the deadly weapon of choice for Prohibition-era gangsters. The Tommy gun, as it was nicknamed, was hand-held, "roughly the size of a new baby," and could fire 800 bullets per minute. Such a gun would have been a devastating weapon in the trenches of World War I, a potential " ‘trench broom.' A gun to sweep away the enemy." Instead, it was loved by the likes of Machine-gun Kelly, Pretty Boy Floyd, and Baby Face Nelson, and their reign of gang violence was glorified in the movies of the 1930s; to some, they were heroes fighting against bankers blamed for the Great Depression. Blumenthal's fascinating biography of the weapon is most dramatic in its chapters on the famous gangsters, as might be expected. It's also a fair-minded analysis of what the Second Amendment intended and what society might do to curb criminal gun violence while respecting the rights of individuals to keep guns. Lively prose, well-selected photographs, and thorough source notes round out this fine work. A gripping look at guns, gangsters, and finding the "right balance between individual freedom and community safety." (Nonfiction. 12-18)

Kirkus Reviews