Very interesting compilation of first hand accounts of young adults and children hopping trains to travel during the Great Depression. Although the subtitle mentions "teenagers", the material covers young adults to about age 26, perhaps because that is the age range used by statistics at the time. The source of information was responses to a 1990's notice publicized in a journal targeted to senior citizens. In addition, newspaper articles and sociological studies or government statistics were used to present these experiences in the historical and social context.
The book is broken into some major sections (reasons for travel, problems encountered, learning to ask for food or shelter, reasons they stopped)with some commentary which attempted to draw generalizations while still presenting the diversity. The commentary was filled with short quotes from the many contributions and followed by several memoirs based on in-depth interviews of some respondents.
From beatings from railroad bulls and cops, and bosses who changed the agreement after the youth did the work, to whores who would give a meal and (unaccompanied) warm place to sleep, this book both matched and challenged some preconceived ideas of this part of our nation's history. ( )

Riding the Rails is a riveting document of hope and hardship during one of this nation's bleakest eras. For all that has been written about the Depression, the travails of those under the age of 18 have been sorely underrepresented. Gripping and well-researched, the reader can all but hear the cadence of the trains and lonesome wail at every whistle-stop.-- Boston Globe

"Riding the Rails sets out to tell about the 250,000 teenagers who hopped freights and lived the hobo life in the wake of the 1929 stock market crash...Uys paints a brisk, colorful, fast-paced portrait of lean times and high hopes." -- Tulsa World

"With more than 500 interviews and stunning archival photographs, Uys thoroughly recreates the wretched conditions the boxcar boys and girls endured." -- Chicago Tribune

"One of the most poignant memories of the wandering youth of the Great Depression." -- Sacramento Bee

"As gripping as it is well-researched." -- Denver Post

"A remarkable story" -- Kansas City Star

"An elegantly presented and quietly moving collection of firsthand reminiscences, capturing a unique moment in American history. Enthusiastically recommended for all public libraries." -- Library Journal

"Whether you're a "gaycat" (novice rider) or a "dingbat" (seasoned hobo), Riding the Rails is entertaining and inspiring, recapturing a time when the country was "dying by inches." -- Sunny Delaney, History Editor, 10 Best History Books of 1999 Amazon.com ( )