"Conspiracy theories (and, from time to time, actual conspiracies) have played a vital
role in shaping the course of American history." So states the editor of this set, which
is the work of more than 123 contributors. It is intended as "a serious and comprehensive
summary of all the major events, ideas, and figures of U.S. conspiracy thinking."
The set begins with "Conspiracy Theories in America: A Historical Overview" and "Making
Sense of Conspiracy Theories," two excellent articles that provide background and
understanding of the subject. This material is followed by more than 300 entries for both
actual and imagined conspiracies. Examples of theories include the extremely well known
as well as the somewhat obscure.

As might be expected, the entry on the John F. Kennedy assassination is the longest,
covering 15 pages. Among other entries are AIDS, Cattle mutilations, Oklahoma City
bombing, Pearl Harbor, Tobacco industry, UFOs, and whitewater. The theories are arranged
alphabetically and include see also references and brief bibliographies of related works.
Appropriate Web sites are also listed for some. Section 3 contains approximately 100
extracts from primary source documents, arranged chronologically from Cotton Mather's
Wonders of the Invisible World (1692) to Lawton et al. v. Republic of Iraq (2003).
A headnote explains the context of each. This is a fascinating reference set that
presents intriguing (albeit sometimes far-fetched) theories. Examining these theories,
one can see how almost any event or idea can be viewed as a conspiracy, actual or imagined.
This would be an excellent addition to academic and large public libraries

Download File Size:11.34 MB

---