This is a strange little book, but very important nonetheless. The story he tells resembles a long parable: the style is simple, the characters almost resemble stick figures, the story itself is artificial. And yet...and yet, the story is powerful, distressing, even heartbreaking, because the historical trend it describes is powerful, distressing, even heartbreaking. In short, Henry and the Great Society is the story of Henry, a man living in a cultural world. a dead end, continuing a way of life that was perhaps a hundred years out of date, and what happens to him when modern life suddenly becomes a possibility. A series of seemingly inconsequential decisions, each seemingly beneficial in itself, inexorably destroys the self-sufficient, productive, peaceful, and contented Henry, transforming him into a thoroughly modern man – dependent, debt-ridden, unhealthy, overworked, worried. Henry's family is destroyed as his wife and children find a life outside the home. Because HL Roush barely embodies the characters of Henry, his wife Esther and his children, it is all the easier for the reader to project themselves into the story. . Every time Henry takes another step away from agrarianism and toward the Great Society, your heart sinks and you want to shout a warning: Don't do it, Henry! Don't you see what a high price you will pay for such an insignificant gain? — but you still know that you were just as inclined that Henry had chosen the same path. In fact, you are much further down this path, due to your own choices and those of those who came before you. You are fully immersed in the life of dependence, specialization, and wage slavery that Henry is gradually moving toward, and so you know exactly how much Henry is throwing away, exactly what kind of slavery he is selling himself into. We recommend that you stop. read the book at the end of Henry's story (p. 86). You won't want to, because the ending is very dark and you'll be looking for some respite from the story, something to cheer you on. Unfortunately, the latter part of the book consists of HL Roush's theological reflections on history, and for the most part they are not edifying. It's best to think about the story yourself, maybe even read it to your children, and think together as a family about what went wrong for Henry, how he could have avoiding the downward spiral and lessons that can be applied to your own situation..