Joseph F. Kett Books

Defines the people, places, sayings, and ideas representing what the authors consider essential information for literate americans

Noted for its innovative coverage of the West and the environment, this best selling U.S. history text provides students with a clear political narrative that incorporates social, cultural, military, and economic history.Each chapter begins with a dramatic vignette that both draws students into the chapter and presents the chapter's main themes. The vignettes are followed by three to five focus questions that provide a framework to help students understand the most important topics in the chapter.

"In this fast-paced information age, how can Americans know what's really important and what's just a passing fashion? Now more than ever, we need a source that concisely sums up the knowledge that matters to Americans - the people, places, ideas, and events that shape our cultural conversation. With more than six thousand entries, The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy is that invaluable source. Wireless technology. Gene therapy, NAFTA. In addition to the thousands of terms described in the original Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, here are more than five hundred new entries to bring Americans' essential knowledge bank up to date. Are you familiar with the digital divide, European Union, Kwanzaa, pheromones, Type A and Type B personalities, spam? Or, test your knowledge on cultural icons that have stood the test of time: Odysseus, Leaves of Grass, Cleopatra, Winston Churchill, the Taj Mahal, and many, many more. Numerous original entries have been revised to reflect the many recent changes in world history and politics, American literature, and, especially, science and technology."--Jacket