Like many of the articles in National Geographic, Barry Miles's book Peace: 50 Years of Protest features a fascinating subject, overflows with amazing photographs, and appears to have been organized by an editor with acute ADD.

Peace traces the peace symbol from its birth (textile designer Gerald Holtom created it in 1958 as a symbol for the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament) to its current position as a worldwide cultural icon. Miles's text is accompanied by mini-articles on everything from Godzilla to Greenpeace, and is illustrated by arresting photographs featuring images ranging from the devastation of Hiroshima to the 2006 anti-Iraq War rallies in Budapest.

Miles's book would have benefited from a solid editing job. The book is poorly organized, the main text is frequently interrupted by pages' worth of unrelated material, and there are several totally incoherent sentences--and in a book as text-light and image-heavy as this one, a few screwed-up sentences really stand out. I read the following three times before giving up in despair (from page 122):

"Largely due to Mike Warnke, author of the discredited testimony The Satan Seller, something he either invented or took from a newsstand pulp book on magic and witchcraft has become a part of received knowledge for many Americans and remains so today."

Yep. Still a stumper.

But while its poor organization and editing (not to mention its non-existent bibliography) prevent it from becoming a serious educational resource, Miles's book has plenty to offer casual readers. A few confusing sentences aside, Peace: 50 Years of Protest is an interesting, enlightening, colorful look at the peace symbol's unique role in history and popular culture.

Check back tomorrow for an excerpt and photographs from Mr. Miles's book.

Labels: Book Reviews, Nonfiction