Review

General Books

Teachers, students, and anyone else interested in the history of the United States will find this anthology both useful and well written. Based on a conference held at the University of New Hampshire in 1999, the anthology presents the summations of fourteen historians on a wide though not definitive range of topics. Their assessments provide a critical analysis of the salient events and movements spanning the last century. The limitations of a book review allow only the briefest descriptions of the topics covered. William E. Leuchtenburg sketches the evolution of the presidency, noting the accomplishments and failures of the eighteen presidents of the 20th century, McKinley to Clinton. While presidential power has increased, our more recent presidents have not always utilized the precedents that have magnified the importance of the office. Lisa McGirr traces the ups and downs of conservatism in America. Never monolithic, conservatism has been written off whenever liberalism triumphed, as in the failure of fundamentalists to wed Bible and textbook in the 1920s, only to experience resurgence near the end of the century. Cheryl Greenberg assesses liberalism's failure to meet its goals for government to end injustice. She sees liberalism in a shambles at the end of the century, rejected for its elitism and its attempt to use big government to solve all problems. Robert J. McMahon traces the global role of the United States from its territorial acquisitions from Spain in 1898 to America's influence on other nations in capitalism and popular culture. Kevin Boyle examines the economic changes in America taking place over the past hundred years as the nation went from manufacturing to a post-industrial service economy.	1
In other essays, Jacqueline Jones demonstrates the linking of politics and poverty in the United States. Throughout the century the poor have remained that way, government efforts focusing on specific groups (industrial as opposed to agricultural), helping some but not others. Lisbeth Cohen examines consumerism in the 20th century, dividing consumers into "citizen activists" and "consumer" consumers, the former working to protect people through legislation ranging from food and drug laws to equal access to public accommodation, the latter group more concerned with its own economic interests. Sara M. Evans describes the place of women in American society and measures the gains made since 1900. Changes in life expectancy rates, professional growth, labor force participation, and political involvement have been dramatic, but the lack of solidarity in the women's movement leaves issues still unresolved. Demonstrating the need to study the grass-roots level history of the civil rights movement, Charles Payne notes the emphasis on national leadership and the neglect of local and state activists. Nancy MacLean assesses the major transformation that took place in the South in the 20th century, while Peggy Pascoe focuses on the issues of democracy, citizenship, and race as factors shaping the history of the West over the past hundred years. Paul Boyer examines the resilience of religion in the United States, and how religious faiths have adapted to changing times and circumstances. Gary Gerstle assesses the dramatic changes in American immigration policy. After the Progressive Era's restriction of European immigration and exclusion of Asians, the major reforms enacted in 1965 have opened the doors to Asian and Latin American immigrants in numbers that in some areas have clearly changed the makeup of American society. In the last essay, Jackson Lears traces the course of American intellectual and social thought from pragmatism to postmodernism.	2
Comprehensive as the range of topics are, readers will no doubt think of some topics not included here. Editor Harvard Sitkoff anticipates this question. "Much, much more could have been included about, for example, this century's amazing explosion of scientific and technological discoveries and innovations that changed how we live, how we fight and heal," he says. "The list could go on and on. But the resulting book would be too expensive to purchase and too heavy to lift." (pp. 3-4) Although the essays in this book will benefit college and high school teachers, as well as Advanced Placement and Honors students looking for insights into important themes about the nation's last century, the bibliographical references at the end of each essay are inconsistent. For no discernible reason, they alternate from a "Bibliography" essay on relevant books to "Suggestions for Further Reading" lists, only sometimes the "Suggestions" are essays too. They range in size from a spare list of only four books to almost two-page essays. This type of anthology invites readers to look further into a topic; a little more thought would have enhanced the usefulness of the bibliographies. Nevertheless, the essays themselves provide an excellent opportunity for reflection on how far we've come in the past century and how far we still have to travel.	3
Los Angeles Valley College Abraham Hoffman

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