Reviews for West in the World A Mid-Length Narrative History Renaissance to Present

The average rating for West in the World A Mid-Length Narrative History Renaissance to Present based on 2 reviews is 2.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2015-05-26 00:00:00 Nathan Pontier This was the textbook for my Western Civilization class.

Review # 2 was written on 2013-03-04 00:00:00 Max Dax World War II is perhaps the most remembered war in the United States. This war is recalled by images of white men crawling in trenches and storming at Normandy while their wives and children at home grew their own gardens to support the troops and collected every scrap of useful metal to build airplanes. Takaki’s book reminds readers that there was much, much more happening at home and on the frontlines during World War II. World War II was fought by the United States in an effort to bring democracy and rights to all. At the same time, each minority group in the United States was being denied basic rights and American hospitality. Takaki brings this to life with personal accounts of events. One account is of an African American veteran who was not allowed to sit down on a bus in the south until his white comrades backed him up. The experiences of African American men and women are brought to life with quotes like “my sister always said that Hitler was the one that got us out of the white folk’s kitchen,” which is a quote by an African American woman commenting on her new opportunity to work outside of domestic service due to vacant factory positions (Takaki 46). This novel is full of specific, telling quotes such as these that depict the unwillingness of America to truly accept other nationalities. Takaki also includes the memories of American born Chinese descendants that had to prove they are not Japanese in order to ensure their safety. He includes accounts from Navajo Indians whose language was used to pass military information. By including personal stories and quotes Takaki has created characters that can be connected to and understood by the reader. Though this book does not have a “plot” per-se, it clearly follows and explains the hardships of each minority group. Because of the fluency of Takaki’s writing, I did not miss having a plot or feel deprived of a storyline. The themes in this book are directly related to what is happening in the world today. I think that the gay marriage and gay acceptance debate that is happening now is like the Civil Rights movement, so this book parallels exactly what is going on today. In addition to comparing the book to what is happening today, students are still learning about World War II. This book directly connects to the curriculum in schools all over the country and the world. One cannot truly understand an event or a time period without learning about how the general population felt. This book provides the feelings of the minority population and the general population in relation to minority groups. Even though the characters in this book are real and have interesting stories, I would only recommend this book to a history enthusiast or a history student looking for more insight into the people behind World War II. This book would be a wonderful accompaniment to classroom lessons on World War II as a mandatory or suggested reading. The personal stories and opinions in this novel are the perfect material to spark a class discussion or help students connect to the time period outside of factual information. This book would also be great for anybody who studies human nature, as it is the account of a pivotal time in history from the perspective of those who lived the events.