Exercising a praiseworthy degree of common sense, Oxford has avoided cumbersome arrangement by topical area or chronology. Instead, all 1,400 signed entries are presented in alphabetical order. Therefore, readers may move easily and quickly to any desired topic. Easy access to the mass of information presented in this source is also facilitated by see and see also references and an index.

Coverage begins with the colonial period. More than 900 scholars have contributed entries on people, places, events, ideologies, historical and social processes, inventions, technological changes, economic developments, conflicts, arts, and religion. Examples include Business cycle; Coolidge, Calvin; Donner party; Drugs; Faulkner, William; FBI; Freedmen's Bureau; Immigrant labor; Mardi Gras; Mexican War; Pony Express; Vaudeville; and Women's rights movements. The entry Hispanic Americans is typical of the longer entries. In 2,500 words it describes the Hispanic-American community; traces its history from colonial times to 2000; notes prominent Hispanic American politicians, artists, and athletes; and characterizes the contemporary Hispanic American experience.

It is convenient that so much information is contained in one volume. However, the trade-off is the small font size, and even researchers young enough to do without reading glasses will appreciate a reader's magnifying glass whenever they may be using the book for more than a few minutes at a time. Also, this is not a good choice if illustrations are important because, other than 25 black-and-white maps, the volume is not illustrated.

There are a few comparable reference sources on U.S. history. The American Heritage Encyclopedia of American History (Holt, 1998), though not quite as current, has 500 illustrations, which might make it a preferred choice for junior and senior high schools. It also has a broader chronological range, because its coverage begins with pre-Columbian times. Facts On File's Dictionary of American History: From 1763 to the Present [RBB Je 1 & 15 01] has fewer and generally shorter entries. The Oxford Companion to United States History is highly recommended for high-school, public, and academic libraries needing an authoritative single-volume resource on the topic. RBB
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