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Library Journal Review
DiCanio, author of The Encyclopedia of Marriage, Divorce and the Family (Facts on File, 1989) and formerly executive director of two mental health and family counseling agencies, here offers an overview of public and domestic violence. Her aim is to ``relate the various kinds of violence, to reconceive them as a single, if complex, threat to the quality of everyday life and to life itself.'' According to the author, all acts of violence have two things in common: males usually commit them, and their actions are political in nature as well as personal because victims are hurt mentally as well as physically. Direct quotes, numerous references within the text, cross references, and statistics develop, confirm, and explain various topics, which range from family and school violence to bias crimes to public issues likes gun control, drug abuse, and the death penalty. The essay-style entries are presented in an encyclopedic format and are usually quite lengthy. There are also three extensive appendixes and a large bibliography. This is a serious approach to criminological, legal, psychological, and sociological issues in the United States and is highly recommended for appropriate academic collections.-- Ina M. Wise, Daley Community Coll. Lib., Chicago (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
CHOICE Review
The introduction describes this work as an "album of snapshots of the places where violence enters everyday life ... as well as a taxonomy of the many varieties of violence." Entries include gun control, police brutality, rape, battered woman's defense, and serial killers. The work, however, might be better described as a collection of essays than an encyclopedia. The opinions of the sole author are often apparent, and the numerous case histories are illustrative but often lurid. Sources of statistics and statements of fact are not always cited, and articles do not have individual lists of references. Moreover, works noted in the articles are not always included in the bibliography. Of 553 items listed in the bibliography, approximately 350 are from newspapers, popular magazines, or television broadcasts. Appendix 1 and 2 are essays, "Organized Crime: Roots of America's Drug Traffic" and "Limitations of Behavioral Science in Studying Violence." Appendix 3 lists approximately 150 public and private agencies whose work relates to violence. A name and subject index is included. Despite the current interest in violence, this work is not recommended. J. Drueke; University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Booklist Review
In the past few years there has been an awakening in America to the reality that we are an extremely violent society. In fact, public health officials have declared that excessive violence may replace illicit drug use as the number-one health concern for the 1990s. This volume, as the author states, "is an album of snapshots of the places where violence enters everyday life in late 20th-century America." The author, whose credentials are not in the field of crime or criminal justice, was ill prepared to cover such a broad subject. DiCanio's entries, although packed with statistical information, suffer three main shortcomings: none has bibliographies or cited sources (outside the text) for follow-up inquiry or research; many have nothing in common with the topic of violence (e.g., Civil Forfeiture or Money Laundering); and many more do not explain their association with violence (e.g., Children's Rights, and Early Release from Prison). Her research is also slanted by geographic restrictions (e.g., newspapers for Boston and New York are quoted extensively, but not those from the rest of the country). Her entry titles are sometimes confusing. Her best review of jails and prisons is contained under Prison Officer's Code of Solidarity, and within this entry she fails to mention a prime work in this field, The Hate Factory, by W. G. Stone. DiCanio also fails to cite this work in her general bibliography at the end of the volume; also missing is the seminal two-volume work, Violence in America, edited by Gurr, now in its third edition (1989). Within the text are no separate listings for violence in the workplace, racism and violence, political violence, or the thesis of the southern subculture of violence, although with her confusing titling of entries there may be some information on these subjects elsewhere within the text. These topics are not mentioned in the index. Following the text are three appendixes that do a nice job in considering the different factions of organized crime, including the Triads and Yakuzas, and a listing with annotations of organizations for prevention and victims of abuse and violence. Although the volume is written for the general reader and is the only encyclopedia on violence, it is not recommended for purchase. (Reviewed Dec. 15, 1993)
