Reader's Guide

American Home Front in World War II: Almanac presents a comprehensive overview of events and everyday life that occurred within the United States while the nation was at war from 1941 to 1945. The volume concentrates on the actual events related to the World War II effort rather than simply relating all general happenings of the time period. The goal throughout is to provide a clear, accurate account of this challenging yet highly productive period in American history that changed the fabric of United States.

Features

American Home Front in World War II: Almanac is divided into thirteen chapters, each focusing on a particular topic such as mobilization of American industry and agriculture, the miracles of war production and economic growth, the experience of women and minorities on the home front, growth of civil defense and other organizations to assist the war effort, the changes to various home front communities, the effects of war on everyday life, and the preparations for a changed postwar world. The chapters contain sidebar boxes that highlight people and events of special interest, and each chapter offers a list of additional sources students can go to for more information. More than ninety black-and-white photographs illustrate the material. The volume begins with a timeline of important events in the history of home front America during World War II; a "Words to Know" section that introduces students to difficult or unfamiliar terms (terms are also defined within the text); and a "Research and Activity Ideas" section. The volume concludes with a general bibliography and a subject index so students can easily find the people, places, and events discussed throughout American Home Front in World War II: Almanac.

American Home Front in World War II Reference Library

American Home Front in World War II: Almanac is only one component of the three-part U•X•L American Home Front in World War II Reference Library. The other two titles in this set are:

  • American Home Front in World War II: Biographies (one volume) presents the life stories of twenty-six individuals who played key roles on the American home front during the World War II years. Individuals from all walks of life are included. Some held prominent national roles in guiding America through the war, others were among the millions who eagerly did their share in contributing to the war effort. Profiled are well-known figures such as President Franklin D. Roosevelt, First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, Secretary of War Henry Stimson, painter Norman Rockwell, social activist A. Philip Randolph, industrialists Donald Douglas and Henry Kaiser, entertainers Betty Grable and Dorothy Lamour, movie director Frank Capra, and journalist Elmer Davis, as well as lesser-known individuals such as industrial worker Peggy Terry, artist and author Mine Okubo, physicist Elda Anderson, and labor leader Luisa Moreno.
  • American Home Front in World War II: Primary Sources (one volume) tells the story of the American home front in the words of the people who lived and shaped it. Approximately thirty excerpted documents provide a wide range of perspectives on this period of history. Included are excerpts from presidential addresses and proclamations; government pamphlets; magazine articles; and reflections by individuals who lived through the tumultuous times.

A cumulative index of all three titles in the U•X•L American Home Front in World War II Reference Library is also available.

Dedication

The American Home Front in World War II volumes are dedicated to our new grandson Luke Clay Hanes. May he and his generation be spared the trauma and ravages of war.

Special Thanks

Kelly Rudd contributed importantly to the Biographies volume. Catherine Filip typed much of the manuscript for the Primary Sources volume. Constance Carter, head of the Library of Congress science research department, assisted in searching out primary source materials.

Comments and Suggestions

We welcome your comments on American Home Front in World War II: Almanac and suggestions for other topics to consider. Please write: Editors, American Home Front in World War II: Almanac, U•X•L, 27500 Drake Rd. Farmington Hills, Michigan 48331-3535; call toll free: 1-800-877-4253; fax to (248) 699-8097; or send e-mail via http://www.gale.com.