Playing soldier

The ways books, magazines, printed ephemera, and toys relating to military life and wartime experience were used to persuade boys to admire, and aspire to become, soldiers and sailors are illuminated in this lively catalogue, which accompanied a Grolier Club exhibition. Covering the period 1871–1918, Richard Cheek shows that young people were encouraged to accept war as an inevitable form of human behavior that offered them a swift path to manhood, defined by acts of exceptional bravery, selfless service, and patriotic devotion. A lavishly illustrated visual history, Playing Soldiers is a valuable resource for those interested in the influence of war culture on children.