From School Library Journal
Herman Sutter, Saint Pius X High School, Houston, TX
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Booklist
The book is arranged chronologically, in chapters from "Colonial Wars, 1565^-1765" to "The United States Military Since 1975." A generally clear and cogent historical summary of the issues surrounding each war forms an introduction to each chapter, after which appears an alphabetical list of signed entries. Numbers of entries in each chapter range from five for "Indian Wars East of the Mississippi" to more than 130 for "World War II." Treatment length runs from around a half-page to more than a page. The level of writing, analysis, and readability is high.
Examples of topics include: from the Civil War, the autobiography Mary Chestnut's Civil War, the song "Maryland, My Maryland," Matthew Brady Studios, Herman Melville, and Memorial Day; and from World War II, G.I. Joe cartoons, the song "God Bless America," the books Gravity's Rainbow and Guadalcanal Diary, the television series Hogan's Heroes, Bob Hope, Randall Jarrell, the Jeep, and the slogan "Kilroy Was Here." Bibliographic references appear at the end of each entry as well as after chapter introductions, but their numbers have been limited by space considerations. A black-and-white "photo essay" contains examples of paintings, postage stamps, and posters. The volume concludes with an index.
The study of popular culture is growing. Besides the advantages of its browsability and nostalgic subject matter, this book will serve as an important starting point for those who wish to begin exploration of this interdisciplinary field. Although titles such as Encyclopedia of American Social History (Scribner's, 1993) and Encyclopedia of Social History [RBB My 15 94] include discussions on popular culture, only War and American Popular Culture provides detailed examinations of representations of war. Recommended for academic and large public library collections.
