A Gathering of Thieves

Book excerpt: Book Summary The Great Depression (1929-1942) brought unbearable hardships to millions of Americans from all walks of life. A job, food and a place to rest at night were difficult to come by. Having an even tougher time were thousands of unfortunate German immigrants, who came to America hoping to escape the debilitating economic conditions that existed in Europe, only to discover that their misery had followed them across the wide Atlantic. Many honest Germans discovered that they were forced to resort to lives of crime in order to survive. This is the tragic tale of four of these immigrants.