[.ca] Cold War: An Illustrated History, 1945-1991 (ISBN 0316439533)

From Amazon.com:
Beautifully designed and illustrated with hundreds of photographs, this companion volume to the CNN documentary series begins with the roots of the cold war: the military intervention by six nations (including the United States) in the Bolshevik's 1917 Russian Revolution. The book then takes on the cold war proper, from the post-WWII rise of the Iron Curtain to the collapse of the Berlin Wall and the Soviet government in the early '90s. "For forty-five years," the authors write, "the peoples of the world held their breath," through missile crises, policies of "mutual assured destruction," the Vietnam War, and the uneasy steps toward détente and full peace highlighted by Richard Nixon's meetings with Brezhnev and by Mikhail Gorbachev's meetings with Ronald Reagan and George Bush. Special sections highlight the role of spies in the cold war, as well as the films and literature of the era. This is a copiously detailed account of the major historical force of the latter half of the 20th century that would make an excellent reference book for any household.

reader from the desert:
In contrast to the views of the reviewer below this is a VERY objective book. The U.S./CIA Cold War activities resulted in the support and establishment of murderous dictatorships in Latin America which were every bit as cruel/oppressive as those of our Communist enemies. There was also the unjust war we waged in Vietnam which killed over a million people. Finally there was the CIA/American backed coup which resulted in the murder of the ELECTED president of Chile, Allende, and the establishement of the dictator Pinochet who is now being prosecuted for mass murder. This book addresses these and other issues instead of using the recent right wing Reagonite rhetoric which equates the U.S. as a benevolent force of freedom as opposed to those evil Communists. The book, while covering many topics and areas related to the cold war, is clearly written and informative. The fantastic illustrations only add to this books appeal. It is time American citizens realize the Cold War was NOT a battle between freedom and tyranny but an amoral conflict between diametrically opposed economic systems struggling to control world markets and resources.

Informative and interesting.:
I bought this book having never seen the BBC series, although I found it incredibly useful and informative. I studied the topic "US-Soviet Relations in the Nuclear Age" in my high school modern history class this year and last \oyears/grades 11 and 12\c and for someone who was quite young when the Cold War came to an end this is a helpful book in that it explains events and the lead up to such events in a simple and easy to understand manner. The photographs are wonderful, and personally I was able to gain a greater insight into what it was that I was actually studying. All in all this book is written in quite a clear and concise style, and, with the inclusion of some brilliant images, is not only highly informative but incredibly interesting.

Glossy, Glib, but Unballanced:
This book offers a pop history of the Cold War intended for a wide audience. Its main aim seems to be to persuade that both sides were morally equivilent - that the Cold War was caused by misunderstandings and politics rather than a clash of civilization vs. barbarism. No one would, or should, treat the conflict against Facism and National Socialism (Nazism) in this fashion; monsterous crimes should be recognized for what they are. Communism was equally wicked, not just another point of view. For a more accurate portrayal of what was at stake in the Cold War I recomend "The Black Book of Communism" and "Architects of Victory." If any sources should be used to educate children, it is these books (especially "The Black Book of Communism," which is thouroughly reasurced by scholars in the various fields that are covered), and not this Turner effort to re-write realities underlying the Cold War.

An excellant general read on a complex period in history...:
If you're looking for general history on the 40 to 50 year period known as the "Cold War", than this book along with the CNN program "Cold War" is for you...contrary to a few of the other reviewers, I liked this book in it's general state and I would not want to extoll my opinions concerning morality here. I'm sure that there are other books that would welcome that type of review, but this book is just for the general history reader and presented in a fabulous format! Maps, color photograhs and charts along with clear and interesting prose make this an excellant "launching pad" to the struggle and to other more detailed views. Highly recommended.

46 years in the making, I guess:
Everyone and their brother has released a book on World War II. Or any other period in history, for that matter. The Vietnam and Korean wars, its all been told a thousand times. But few books that I've ever found in general circulation cover the broad topic of the entire Cold War. Issacs and crew cover the period with as much detail as possible in such a complicated and even sometimes confusing period of time. They do a superb job, with each chapter covering a specific feature of the Cold War, such as the Cuban Missle crisis and more interesting, though less known of events. Issacs provides a very objective viewpoint, and makes reading Cold War: An Illustrated History not so much as a chore as some history books can be. The pictures provided are really good, and provide many pictures of the key players in the game of chess that was played on Earth throughout the decades. I rather enjoyed the various side bars presented throughout the book, each one touching upon various aspects of the Cold War, such as spies, or even entertainment. If you have any interest in the Cold War, or are just plain curious as to what made the world what it is now, this is your best place to start. Buy it.