About the Book
A multidimensional, multidisciplinary work on one of the least understood but most important conflicts in modern history.
A cornerstone work in ABC-CLIO's distinguished list of reference works on military history, The Encyclopedia of the Korean War: A Political, Social, and Military History is a comprehensive resource on the confrontation that became the first shooting war of the Cold War, the first limited conflict of the Atomic Age, and the war that led to a dramatic escalation of the national security state while foreshadowing U.S. involvement in Vietnam.
Encyclopedia of the Korean War offers complete coverage of strategies, weapon systems, and clashes that marked the course of events on the battlefield. But this authoritative, multidisciplinary work expands beyond the military perspective to portray the overall culture of the era, addressing a variety of political, economic, social, and popular culture topics as well. Incorporating a wealth of recent research, the new edition adds more than 130 entries and updated coverage throughout, plus more bibliographic listings, an expanded historiographical essay, and a documents volume.
Table of Contents:
Volume I: A–L
List of Entries,
List of Maps,
Foreword,
Preface,
General Maps,
Introduction,
Entries,
Index,
Volume II: M–Z
List of Entries,
List of Maps,
General Maps,
Entries,
Appendix A,
Appendix B,
Appendix C,
Chronology,
Glossary,
Selected Bibliography,
List of Editors and Contributors,
Categorical Index,
Index,
Volume III: Documents
List of Documents,
Documents,
Index,
About the Author :
Spencer C. Tucker, PhD, is senior fellow in military history for ABC-CLIO and the author or editor of more than 40 books and encyclopedias, many of which have been recognized by awards.
Paul G. Pierpaoli, Jr., PhD, has authored Truman and Korea: The Political Culture of the Early Cold War and has written extensively on the economic, political, and social aspects of the Korean War.
Review :
The first edition of this three-volume reference was published in 2000, and of course the war hasn't changed since then, but there has been enough new scholarship and new information uncovered to merit a second edition. In his preface and introductory essay, editor Tucker (emeritus, Texas Christian University) provides an overview of the significance of the 'forgotten war,' emphasizing its importance to the shape of world politics today. Following, in two volumes, are 750 alphabetically organized signed entries (from 125 contributors), 120 of which are new, and all of which have been updated or expanded. The third volume contains approximately 150 primary source documents. The set includes a chronology of the war (newly expanded with further detail on modern Korean history), a glossary, a bibliography, and many B&W maps and photos; indexing is included in each volume.
While there are a number of inexpensive one-volume titles available, such as Korean War: An Encyclopedia (Routledge, 1999) and Historical Dictionary of the Korean War (Scarecrow, 2010. 2d ed.), they present neither the scope nor the scholarship of Tucker's massive tomes. Buy this set or buy nothing at all. Strongly recommended for all public and academic libraries; should be a core collection item for all military and history libraries.
This is an excellent source for high-school, academic, and public libraries. The revisions and additions make it a good purchase even for libraries that own the first edition.
…this encyclopedia is a well-organized, ready-reference tool that will be a very important acquisition, particularly for academic libraries supporting lower-level undergraduates, and for large public and school libraries. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Lower-level undergraduates through faculty/researchers; general readers.
