School Library Journal Review

Gr 4-6-This slim title has five chapters: "America Awakens to the Terrorist Threat," "Counterterrorism Intelligence Failures," "Fighting Terror Through Legislation," "The USA Patriot Act Becomes Law," and "Balancing Safety with Civil Liberties." The writing is clear, but not completely unbiased. The information is organized logically with captioned color photos. The author indicates that there are 150 provisions to the act but never delves into them. The discussion about the implications of the Patriot Act for the civil liberties of Americans is already out-of-date, and there is no mention of its chilling effect on American libraries. The book's format is too simple for older readers, and the information is too complex for younger readers. The only value here is the brief history of the act.-Pat Scales, South Carolina Governor's School for the Arts and Humanities, Greenville (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.