Never Give Up: A Prairie Family's Story

Written by Tom Brokaw

Narrated by Lincoln Hoppe

In this moving story, the New York Times bestselling author of The Greatest Generation chronicles the values and lessons he absorbed from his parents and other people who worked hard to build lives on the prairie during the first half of the twentieth century.

“A spare, elegant masterpiece.”—Ken Burns

Tom’s father, Red, left school in the second grade to work in the family hotel—the Brokaw House, established in Bristol, South Dakota, by R. P. Brokaw in 1883. Eventually, through work on construction jobs, Red developed an exceptional talent for machines. Tom’s mother, Jean, was the daughter of a farmer who lost everything during the Great Depression. They met after a high school play, when Jean played the lead and Red fell in love with her from the audience. Although they didn’t have much money early in their marriage, especially once they had three boys at home, Red’s philosophy of “Never give up” served them well. His big break came after World War II, when he went to work for the Army Corps of Engineers building great dams across the Missouri River, magnificent structures like the Fort Randall and the Gavins Point dams. Late in life, Red surprised his family by recording his memories of the hard times of his early life, reflections that inspired this book.

Tom Brokaw is known as one of the most successful people in broadcast journalism. Throughout his legendary career, Brokaw has always asked what we can learn from world events and from our history. Within Never Give Up is one answer, a portrait of the resilience and respect for others at the heart of one American family’s story.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group
• Release date: Jun 13, 2023
• ISBN: 9780593742747

Reviews for Never Give Up

[formerenglishteacher · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This might be the shortest book on my reading list, but it certainly isn’t the least impactful. Tom Brokaw shares the history of his family, mainly in South Dakota, and by doing that, delves into much about the history of this country in that part of the country. His parents were hard working and passed their work ethic and honesty on to their three boys. Tom’s love for them and the locations he grew up in are evident. He was as typical an American boy as you’ll find anywhere. His final chapter, the epilogue, shows his frustration in where we’ve come especially the past few years. Tom says he never in a million years guessed that he would live to see a United States where our president attempted to over throw the government he had led for four years. The final few pages are optimistic, even in the face of that. That’s Tom Brokaw, and we’re lucky to have had him at NBC and still have him.