Historiography

Reviews of books about the 1920s in historiographical context.

Book Review: Strangers in the Land

Overview Historian John Higham, in his own words, aimed to provide “a semi autonomous scope for belief and emotions” with his book Strangers in the Land. This was a unique…

May 4, 2023
Book Review: In the Shadow of the Split

In the excerpt, Foster examines how the Irish Civil War of 1922-23 has been written about by various historians and scholars over time. Foster contends that the dominant narratives of…

May 3, 2023
Book Review: County Longford and the Irish Revolution, 1910-1923

Overview Marie Coleman is a lecturer in history and a professor of twentieth century Irish history at Queen’s University Belfast. She has written multiple books and journal articles related to…

March 14, 2023
Book Review: Prohibition: Thirteen Years That Changed America by Edward Behr

Summary “Prohibition: Thirteen Years That Changed America” by Edward Behr is a historical account of the period between 1920 and 1933 when the United Sates government implemented a nationwide ban…

March 9, 2023
Book Review: Democracy Delayed

Charles W. Eagles’ novel “Democracy Delayed” shows a distinct urban-rural tension within the United States by examining how states are represented and in particular the 1920s centennial election. Eagles starts…

March 8, 2023
Historiographical Review of “Setting a Course: American Women in the 1920s”

Summary Dorothy M. Brown’s novel titled “Setting A Course: American Women in the 1920s” was written in 1987 and goes into depth regarding the roles that women held throughout the…

May 12, 2021
Book Review: Rethinking the 1920s: Historians and Changing Perspectives by David J. Goldberg

David J. Goldberg A professor of history at the Cleveland State University, David J. Goldberg has spent much of his career in the field of history publishing books on the…

April 13, 2021
Book Review: White Collar: The American Middle Class by C. Wright Mills

Charles Wright Mills Born in the later half of the 1910s, Charles Wright Mills was an esteemed American sociologist who was heavily influenced by the theories and ideals of German…

March 17, 2021
Book Review: The Emergence of International Society in the 1920s by Daniel Gorman

Daniel Gorman’s The Emergence of International Society in the 1920s tells the story of how World War I created an international community that connected the globe. In the aftermath of…

March 17, 2021
Book Review: Jews and Booze: Becoming American in the Age of Prohibition

The 1920s is a decade in which an enormous amount of historians have contributed to the ongoing discussions surrounding the time period. While some praise the decade as a time…

March 16, 2021