Review by Choice Review
The "only recent encyclopedic work that focuses solely on anarchism" is concerned with 174 anarchists and related organizations, events, and writings. The greatest number of entries treat individuals from all times and countries, e.g., Zeno of Citium (342-267 BCE), William Godwin, Alexander Beckman, Che Guevara, Pierre-Joseph Proudhon, Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti, Ricardo Flores Magon, Mary Wollstonecraft. Organizations make up the second largest number of entries (Black Panthers, political parties, movements). Other entries include Abrams v. US, the Communist Manifesto, events, and terminology. Finding guides consist of the table of contents, cross-references, and a detailed index. Entries vary from a paragraph to two pages in length; each has a bibliography of books and Web sites. A general bibliography of books and Web sites and an appendix, "Internet Anarchism," which lists newsgroups, mail lists, and more Web pages, supplement the text. Not themselves anarchists, the authors aim for neutrality. The work grew out of their biography Emma Goldman (1997), about the US's most famous anarchist. No other recent encyclopedias treat anarchy exclusively or are as comprehensive in covering individuals and related organizations and events. Paul Avrich's Anarchist Portraits (1988), a collection of biographical sketches of 15-20 leaders worldwide, is a good historical overview that includes some individuals the Gays omit (Gustav Landauer, J.W. Fleming, and Paul Brousse). The Encyclopedia of Revolutions and Revolutionaries, ed. by Martin van Creveld (CH, Jun'96), is international in scope and covers major individuals but omits William Godwin and Mary Wollstonecraft. The Encyclopedia of the American Left, ed. by Mari Jo Buhle et al. (1998), covers only the US. The Encyclopedia of Political Revolutions, ed. by Jack A. Goldstone (1998), contains an article on anarchism that mentions major people. The Gays' work fills a niche for this topic and is recommended for political science research collections. L. Treff-Gangler; University of Colorado at Denver
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Booklist Review
The preface to this volume opens with a description of anarchy as "history's most misunderstood social movement," and the balance of the text is devoted to correcting such misunderstandings with clearly written, well-researched, readable, browseable material. The goal is "to provide a reference source for others who are fascinated by the possibilities manifested in the actions, the dreams, the writings, and the people who influenced anarchism." This work appears to have found a niche; certainly there does not appear to be an abundance of ready-reference resources that cover the subject of anarchy. Among the 170 entries are Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798; anarchist songs; Black Panthers; Chomsky, Noam; Earth First!; French anarchism; Goldman, Emma; modern school movement; New Left; Wollstonecraft, Mary; and Zapatista National Liberation Army. Coverage is international in scope and ranges through time from Zeno of Citium (342 B.C.^-ca. 267 B.C.) to Internet anarchism, which is discussed in an appendix Entries are arranged alphabetically, and each provides see references and brief bibliographies (including numerous Web sites) that encourage and support the targeted readers, defined as "the curious student and the interested scholar." A general bibliography is offered, as is a well-developed index. The entries range in length from the single paragraph used to describe the Anarchist Cookbook as a book "filled with 1960s rhetoric and a great deal of incomplete or dangerously incorrect information" to the nearly two full pages allotted to Lucy Parsons: "History has often ignored [her], primarily because she was thought to have devoted her life to her husband, Albert, one of the eight Haymarket martyrs . . . but Lucy was a strong revolutionary activist and spent nearly 70 years fighting for the oppressed and the rights of women, workers, people of color, and political prisoners." This title is recommended for public, college, and high-school library users. In addition, it should also prove to be a very useful curriculum-support tool for high-school social studies, current events, and history teachers.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Library Journal Review
Gr 9 Up-Cogent, concise articles, several paragraphs to several pages in length, examine major figures and describe organizations, revolutions, strikes, laws, and court cases marking significant milestones in the development of the anarchist movement. Along with well-known people such as Emma Goldman and Mikhail Bakunin are profiles of Noam Chomsky, Philip Berrigan, the "Haymarket Anarchists," and Thomas Paine. Entries on modern rebels and movements include the Zapatista National Liberation Army, Black Panthers, Earth First!, and American Antigovernment Extremists of the 1980s and 1990s. Topics linked by helpful see-also references and the thorough index make the information accessible. While Richard D. Sonn's Anarchism (Twayne, 1992) and Paul Avrich's Anarchist Portraits (Princeton Univ., 1988) provide more in-depth analyses of the history and lives involved in the movement, this encyclopedia offers balance to the stereotypical portrayals of anarchists found in some standard histories. An appendix discusses how the Internet, "...the quintessential example of a large scale anarchist organization," can be a source for further research and provides an extensive annotated list of Web sites. A generous bibliography of print materials adds to the value of this volume.-Douglas Wooley, Brooklyn Public Library, NY (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Choice Review
Review by Booklist Review
Review by Library Journal Review
