Chronology of American Military History

Gr 10 Up—A minimum of one, and usually no more than three, items are listed for almost every date in this set, beginning with January 27, 1775, and ending with December 31, 2009. Each entry is categorized as military, naval, Marines, aviation, politics, technology, terrorism, or diplomacy, and is usually no more than three to six lines in length. Wide outside margins carry the year at the bottom of the page. Informative, boxed biographical sketches of prominent military leaders and Native Americans are included amid the chronologies. Most of them include a portrait of the subject, and there are a few other black-and-white photos scattered throughout the volumes. Though the text is accurate, poorly worded sentences and far too many typos will leave readers confused or chuckling; e.g., General J.E.B. Stuart is reported to have been "morally wounded" during the Civil War; Admiral Byrd almost died of "carbon dioxide" poisoning; and Apollo 17 made "a final touch down on the lunar surface for the last time." Each volume contains a section of easy-to-read black-and-white maps and a bibliography pertaining to that volume. Unless readers are browsing the set, the index in volume three will be an absolute necessity for making effective use of this resource. A marginal purchase—Eldon Younce, Anthony Public Library, KS