cover image Gurl

Gurl

Philip Lerman, Andrews McMeel Publishing, Anthony M. Casale. Andrews McMeel Publishing, $10.99 (0pp) ISBN 978-0-8362-1847-3

This superficial history of the past two decades chronicles major events in politics, natural and man-made disasters and trend-setting movies and TV shows. It is the sort of book that could have been assembled from clips in any newspaper morgue. The distinctive feature is the interweaving of the stories of certain members of the Woodstock generation who tuned out of the mainstream, chief among them Abbie Hoffman and Ken Kesey, both of whom remained protesters long after 1969. Hyperbole runs rampant, as when the music fest at Woodstock is declared ``a focal point in American history.'' It is journalists Casale and Lerman's thesis that the Woodstockers faced two decades of disillusionment and now, in their 40s, stand ready to run the world. Photos not seen by PW. (Aug.)