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Book: Not So Wild a Dream
Author: Eric Severeid
Review by: Craig Lesser, chairman, The Pendleton Group
Originally written in 1946, this book is Severeid’s account of life growing up in the upper Midwest before becoming a much-honored member of Edward R. Murrow’s band of reporters in Europe leading up to and through the war years.
His boyhood was the stuff of many a young man’s fantasies: living in the great outdoors and becoming fascinated with journalism. Through a series of fortunate events, he ended up witnessing and broadcasting on the CBS radio network his observations of the dark times of the 1940s and beyond.
I first read this book in 1977, as it was reprinted and I was in my early days as a radio news reporter in Atlanta. At that time, Severeid was a widely respected reporter and commentator still on the CBS, both radio and TV. Upon meeting with him at a broadcasting conference in Atlanta, I requested he sign my copy of the book, to which he replied dryly, “I hope you paid for it.” He signed it.
Being much older now, and rereading the book, I found so many nuggets that suggest many similarities of his reflections of the world back then and the global turmoil we currently experience, including the rise of populists and demagogues. A reminder that we shouldn’t forget is the quote credit to Twain: “History doesn’t repeat itself, but it often rhymes.”
Severeid was known first and best as a broadcaster, but he might have been an even greater writer.
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Each year, Global Atlanta asks influential readers and community leaders to review the most impactful book they read during the course of the year. This endeavor has continued annually since 2010.
See last year’s full list of books on BookShop here, and all 2020 reader reviews here.
All books were chosen and reviews written independently, with only mild editing from our staff.