Review by Choice Review
The editors and authors of this collection of ten papers revisit and reevaluate the seminal work of those who contributed to The Absolute Weapon, edited by Bernard Brodie (1946). The editors' introduction nicely summarizes the three main themes that have preoccupied analysts since the onset of the atomic age: the nature and implications of nuclear weapons, the meaning and utility of deterrence, and prospects for international control of nuclear arms. The authors of the 1946 book shared an emergent Cold War consensus on the revolutionary character of nuclear weapons, retaliation as a strategy, and limited prospects for international controls. Not surprisingly, however, the contributors to this 1998 volume exhibit wide-ranging and sharply different theoretical, analytical, and policy perspectives on the roles and risks of nuclear weapons, the relevance of strategic deterrence, and the future of nuclear nonproliferation and disarmament efforts in the new world order. This is a book by and for specialists, clearly aimed at an advanced, sophisticated, and limited audience of graduate students, scholars, and policy professionals. Although there are dozens of recent books and think-tank studies of the multifaceted nuclear weapons issue, the scope, depth, and quality of the papers in this volume are its marks of distinction. Strongly recommended for libraries and collections specializing in international security, war and peace studies, military and defense issues, and arms control. J. P. Smaldone; Georgetown University
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
