The massive, 22-plus-volume complement to Magill's 1976 revision of Masterplots is near completion. The nonfiction series (the fifth of six complementary sets) covers currently faddish "literary nonfiction": some 300 autobiographies, memoirs, and (shades of Cultural Literacy ) a "broad selection of nonfiction works that the culturally literate person will encounter." The selections are mostly 20th-century writings in English, though some 19th-century works in other languages, mainly European, are included. Each work is summarized, analyzed, and placed in a critical context; Eichmann in Jerusalem, Blue Highways, The Double Helix, and Small Is Beautiful are typical selections. The entries are clear, objective, and well written, but this set's narrow scope makes it the least valuable part of this costly series.
