Book Review: A Grand Old Flag: A History of the United States Through its Flags

Majestically fluttering since 1777

There are plenty of flag books around, I've got three others that concentrate on the contemporary graphic aspects rather than the history, so why did I choose this title? Primarily because it was published by Dorling Kindersley. From experience, over the years, I know that their books deliver high standards of editorial and production excellence. This lovely book confirms it.

Because Kevin and Peter Keim reveal a ton of flag information throughout the pages they have thoughtfully included near the front of the book an explanation of how everything is organized: essentially using the addition of each star as the editorial key. Much of text about the flag is common to other titles but I thought what gives the Keim's book a lift are all the related items they cover, for example: a spread visually showing fourteen different flag stars; types of fiber used in flag making; stitching and grommet styles over the centuries; the story of Uncle Sam; patriotic songs; flag etiquette and more. Add in all the excellent flag photos and graphics (all beautifully laid out on each page) and it seems to me that the book can't really be improved on. A lovely extra is a long flag timeline foldout tucked in a flap inside the back cover.

Though the book was published in 2007 it seems now to be remaindered stock and therefore new copies should be quite cheap. Some net prices certainly seem excessive (I reckon no more than $15 for a good copy) so it's worth searching around for a realistic price. Check that the timeline foldout is included, too.

A Grand Old Flag: A History of the United States Through its Flags is available at Amazon (US | CA | UK | DE | FR | IT | ES | JP | CN)