Variations in perceptions of drug use and they way they can move back and forth across licit and illicit categories, believe Tracy (history of medicine, U. of Oklahoma) and Acker (history, Carnegie Mellon U.) tell us much about the changing nature of American society. They present 14 papers that explore the social histories of a range of psychoactive drugs in America. Among other topics, papers look at changing definitions of "alcohol problem," dynamics of opiate addiction in the early 20th century, the relationship between habitual narcotic use and the professionalization of medical authority, the rhetoric of drug reform between 1920 and 1940, gender and debates over alcoholism, changing perceptions of tobacco use, and controversies over psychedelic drug research in the 1950s. Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)