The developing history of consumption is not so much a separate field, as a prism through which many aspects of social and political life may be viewed. The essays in this collection represent a variety of approaches in Europe and America; yet their commonalities suggest recent directions in the scholarship, raising such themes as consumption and democracy, the development of a global economy, the role of the state, the centrality of consumption to Cold War politics, the importance of the Second World War as a historical divide, the language of consumption, the contexts of locality, race, ethnicity, gender, and class, and the environmental consequences of twentieth-century consumer society. Implicitly, and sometimes explicitly, they explore the role of the historian as social, political, and moral critic. The essays discuss products, corporate strategies, government policies, and ideas about consumption. Unlike other studies of twentieth-century consumption, this book provides international comparisons.

"Getting and Spending provides an excellent overview of the current state of play regarding political and cultural approaches to the 20th-century consumer." Choice

"This large volume of essays edited by Susan Strasser, Charles McGovern, and Matthias Judt is a sampler from the latest research of some of the most prominent and imaginative historians of twentieth-century European/American consumer culture. It is an unusually fine collection, originating in a 1995 conference sponsored by the German Historical Institute. Although hardly encyclopedic, the collection offers a balanced and comprehensive view of the entire century." American Historical Review

"...the essays illuminate important themes and issues, opening up a variety of opportunities for comparative study..." Sue Wright, Business History

"Getting and Spending is a rich and rewarding collection of twenty-one essays...Throughout the volume, international perspectives illuminate how differing national cultures, local customs, and contexts of class, gender, ethnicity, and race have shaped the contours of consumer societies. Getting and Spending breaks new ground with such international comparisons and will hopefully inspire additional comparative work." Lisa Jacobson, Technology & Culture

"In October 1995, scholars gathered at the German Historical Institute in Washington, D.C., to contemplate the similarities and differences among twentieth-century consumer societies. The end product of that meeting is Getting and Spending, a cutting-edge anthology containing twent-one essays on consumerism by some of the field's pioneering researchers, including university and museum scholars...This milestone volume on the political economy of modern consumer societies will leaves a deep mark, influencing debates on the subject far into the future...A masterful and groundbreaking work, Getting and Spending will keep historians of consumer society engaged for years to come." Enterprise & Society