Bound To Stay Bound

Booklist - 09/01/2018 Authors explore the tumultuous global events of 1968 in this anthology. Covering protests, assassinations, racism, scientific discoveries, world politics, and even the state of humor, these contributions, written in a range of styles, offer a wide variety of perspectives on the year. Some essays, such as personal recollections of being a teenager in 1968, are less successful than the entries informed by in-depth research, but taken together, they present a nuanced picture. For instance, Kate MacMillan’s account of being a student protester in Paris in 1968 contrasts sharply with Lenore Look’s incisive essay about the impact of the Cultural Revolution on China’s poor, rural population. Even though all the essayists have essentially the same perspective—the Vietnam War was a mistake; civil rights protesters were doing immense good—the differences in their backgrounds make for a vivid, dynamic account of the complicated, intersecting politics behind brief accounts in history books. With an approach promoting critical thinking, this collection will likely help illuminate a deeply important year in world history and encourage fresh thinking about our current contentious moment. - Copyright 2018 Booklist.

School Library Journal - 09/01/2018 Gr 7 Up—This anthology addresses "the seismic shifts and splits" that characterized the late 1960s and early 70s, including entries on the civil rights movement, the Vietnam War, the influence of Communism on democracy, and the influence of democracy on Communism. The book also touches on the rise of technology, the history of comedy, and the place of athletes in activism. Many of the essays are personal narratives, which lends the collection a sense of immediacy and emotional intimacy. The editors have crafted a comprehensive work, and while not every essay will compel every reader, there is something to appeal to almost every interest. That said, there are chapters where sexual assault and beatings are described, and David Lubar's "Running with Sharp Shticks" is a miss; Lubar hints at controversy surrounding various comics and their routines but doesn't really dive in, using "the lens of twenty-first century sensibilities and sensitivities" as reasoning why a joke "might be seen as an example of racism, a brilliant parody of racism, or an uncomfortable mix of the two." To encourage research, several of the writers include teasers in the forms of names and terms that might be interesting to explore. The book begins with the essays, but points back to scholarship, or into the world itself, in a delightful way. VERDICT This wide-ranging anthology is useful as both a print symposium on the topic of 1968 and as a source book for further study.—Sheri Reda, Wilmette Public Library, IL - Copyright 2018 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.