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CHOICE Review

Richard L. Morton's superb two-volume Colonial Virginia (1960) has long been out of print. Now, Billings, Selby, and Tate incorporate findings and interpretations of recent scholarship and extend Morton's coverage to 1775, with some afterthoughts as to the effects of the Revolution. Allowing for the difficulty of compressing the history of the oldest and largest colony into a single volume, this verbose book is nevertheless deficient in balance and comprehensiveness. Like Morton's work, this history is overweighted in its treatment of institutional aspects. Discussion of the first 50 years is all too sketchy. Analyses of the rise and role of the gentry are faulty, although discussions of political development have original and valuable insights. The authors' depiction of social history is enhanced by reference to conclusions of quantitative studies and discussion of material culture. A major weakness is the neglect of westward expansion and the frontier, certainly major themes in the colony's history. Unfortunately, the French and Indian War and its profound effects are quickly glossed over. Economic analysis is almost exclusively confined to tobacco. The index is incomplete but the bibliographical essay useful.-H.M. Ward, University of Richmond