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THE LAST DAYS OF INNOCENCE: AMERICA AT WAR, 1917-1918, by Meirion and Susie Harries, Random House, $32.50.

Published to coincide with the 80th anniversary of the United States’ entry into World War I, the authors offer insight into the underrated role that America played during the war in which some five million American servicemen took part, with more than a quarter of a million of them being killed or wounded. Aided by American, British, and French archival material, the Harries document the crucial part played by both those who served overseas and those on the homefront and detail how the mat?riel, money, and morale supplied by the United States played a significant role in the success of the Allies against Germany and the other Axis nations.