Review by Choice Review
Chaplin (Anglia Ruskin Univ., Cambridge) points out that though often mistaken as a quintessential part of British pub culture, the game of darts is not historically traditional to that environment. According to the author, the brewing industry and publicans introduced the sport into pubs and, along with newspaper sponsorships and tournaments, encouraged the growth of its popularity during the interwar period to compete with the increasing availability of other inexpensive recreational activities. Chaplin goes on to look at darts in terms of the culture of the day: after WW I, younger people spent more of their money and leisure time at movie houses, football matches, or listening to the radio than visiting pubs. Darts helped to reinvigorate pubs. To accommodate the game, pubs were refurbished and made more comfortable; dart leagues made local pubs more respectable in order to address the concerns of temperance groups and those who warned that games would lead to gambling. Although academic interest in darts is limited, Chaplin's research into oral histories, newspaper articles, and unpublished documents reveals, for the first time, a substantial body of resources. Summing Up: Optional. Graduate students, researchers. E. J. Jenkins Arkansas Tech University
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
