The 24 essays presented by Schulzinger (history and international affairs, U. of Colorado at Boulder) are best described as historiographical assessments of the various literatures analyzing American foreign relations from independence to the early years of the 21st century in that they are more concerned with how American foreign relations has been described and judged by historians and how those descriptions have changed over different eras. The chapters proceed in a broadly chronological fashion, discussing such topics as the history of US culture and foreign relations, international environmental issues, the US and imperialism, US relations with particular regions and countries during various important periods, World Wars I and II, the Cold War, the Korean and Vietnam Wars, presidential elections and the Cold War, and Détente over 30 years. Annotation ©2007 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)