Consumer culture /

In this revised edition (1st ed., CH, Oct'96, 34-1002) of her groundbreaking work, Lury extends her comprehensive overview of key theories, perspectives, and findings related to consumer culture into two additional areas. They are the ethics of consumer culture, in which the author explores the complexities of making ethical consumer choices on a daily basis; and the pervasiveness of branding and the rise of a mediated economy. As in her other chapters, these two new areas are thoroughly researched and laden with historical and contemporary examples. The reader will also surely note that a common theme throughout the work is how consumption has essentially supplanted production in individuals' and groups' creation and negotiation of self and identity. The implications and potential consequences of this transformation are addressed as well. The net result is a concise yet theoretically dense overview of the main issues that scholars and researchers of consumer culture will be focusing on for years to come. Summing Up: Essential. Graduate, research, and professional collections. J. R. Mitrano Central Connecticut State University