Image courtesy of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum.
Books Are Weapons
Artifact IDMO 2005.13.20.14
Object Type
Poster
Maker
Unknown
Dateca. 1942
Mediumpaper (cardstock), ink
Dimensionsoverall H 28 in x W 22 in (71.1 cm x 55.9 cm )
Physical DescriptionA color poster featuring a large red letter “V” (symbolizing Victory). Blue and red text within and below the “V” reads: BOOKS ARE WEAPONS / These books were chosen in the Book Poll conducted in bookstores, the New York Public Library and among the general public as having done the most for the war effort / THE BOOK MOBILIZATION / . . . — [Morse code for "V"]. Ten illustrated blue bombs are showing falling in front of the “V”, each numbered and with a title and author in white lettering. The books listed are:
1. “Mission to Moscow” by Joseph E. Davies
2. “Defense Will Not Win the War” by Lt. Col. W. F. Kernan
3. “Ambassador Dodd’s Diary”
4. “Berlin Diary” by William L. Shirer
5. “Russia’s Fighting Forces” by Sergei Kournakoff
6. “You Can’t Do Business with Hitler” by Douglas Miller
7. “Blood, Sweat and Tears” by Winston Churchill
8. “Soviet Power” by Hewlett Johnson
9. “Price of Free World Victory” by Henry A. Wallace
10. “Days of Our Lives” by Pierre Van Paassen
The poster designer’s facsimile initials are in the lower right corner of the artwork: AD. A union bug for the Sign Pictorial and Display Union, Local 230, is in the lower right corner of the poster.
Additional Details1. “Mission to Moscow” by Joseph E. Davies
2. “Defense Will Not Win the War” by Lt. Col. W. F. Kernan
3. “Ambassador Dodd’s Diary”
4. “Berlin Diary” by William L. Shirer
5. “Russia’s Fighting Forces” by Sergei Kournakoff
6. “You Can’t Do Business with Hitler” by Douglas Miller
7. “Blood, Sweat and Tears” by Winston Churchill
8. “Soviet Power” by Hewlett Johnson
9. “Price of Free World Victory” by Henry A. Wallace
10. “Days of Our Lives” by Pierre Van Paassen
The poster designer’s facsimile initials are in the lower right corner of the artwork: AD. A union bug for the Sign Pictorial and Display Union, Local 230, is in the lower right corner of the poster.
Custodial History NoteDonated to the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum by the Adriance Memorial Library.
Credit LineGift of the Adriance Memorial Library
National Archives Catalog CollectionFranklin D. Roosevelt Library Museum Collection (National Archives Identifier 735948)
National Archives Catalog SeriesOriginal Posters from World War I and World War II (National Archives Identifier 739394)
Use Restriction StatusUnrestrictedCopyrightReproduction or other use of these holdings or images thereof is unrestricted.In Collection(s)
Not on view