William E. Leuchtenburg
Richard Fried's lively, perceptive, brilliantly written account of two decades of pageantry offers sometimes chilling, and often comical insights into the political culture of Cold War America.
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Robert D. Schulzinger
A significant new approach to our understanding of domestic aspects of the Cold War. Drawing from a rich array of original sources, Fried shows how a government-private partnership created public pageants to generate popular support for the conflict with the Soviet Union. No other work explains so well how prominent officials and business leaders tried to persuade ordinary people to see connections between their daily lives and the global competition with the Soviet Union.
University of Colorado, Boulder
David M. Oshinsky
A wonderful account of civil pageantry in the McCarthy era, when true patriots observed 'Loyalty Day,' rode the 'Freedom Train,' and marched in 'Wake Up, America' parades. In the crowded field of Cold War scholarship, The Russians Are Coming! The Russians Are Coming! stands out for its originality, its elegant writing, and its often-hilarious recreation of the grassroots struggle against communism in the ominous days of Alger Hiss, atomic air raid drills, and the Korean War. A must-read for anyone interested in modern American history, and a fun read as well.
Rutgers University