Review of "Look At America," by the Editors of Look

Review of

Look At America, by the Editors of Look

Four out of five stars

 Published after the Second World War, in this book there are many aspects of the text and pictures that are dated. All the internal images are in black and white, yet they manage to capture the grandeur of the natural state of the land. The Rockies are majestic, the rivers wide and powerful and you know the trees and grass are green. I always enjoy focusing on the appearance of the cars, yet there are many images where the horsepower for the vehicle is supplied by horses.

The country is split into seven regions, each is described by a short section of text followed by a set of full-page images. Alaska and Hawaii are not yet states. There are occasional racial slurs, none more significant that the following sentence in the first page of text describing the south.

“For some the South conjures up a stereotype of porticoes and pointed goatees, magnolias and mockingbirds, belles in crinolines, satiny thoroughbreds, faithful mammies and engaging pickaninnies, of places where the aroma of honeysuckle mingles with that of crushed mint.”

 Other than such outdated formerly mainstream depictions, this book is a very interesting look back at the United States before the population became truly mobile via widespread ownership of cars and the modern interstate highway system. The pictures are what makes the book interesting.