1933 was a pretty scary year. On January 30 Hitler became Chancellor of Germany. In March FDR was inaugurated with his only thing we have to fear is fear itself speech. The Great Depression was ongoing. No wonder when Dora and Edward were fleeing German spies in Chicago and had to slip into a dark movie theater to escape the feature attraction was King Kong. All the dark fears of the time period seemed to be expressed by the monster raging through New York City destroying everything in his path. Good thing that Dora and Edward are in a thriller novel instead of a monster novel, or he might pick up Dora and run away with her. But as it was the monster is a very apt symbol of that frightful year and the overwhelming complexities Dora and Edward face.
