For Which It Stands: An Anecdotal Biography of the American Flag, by Michael Corcoran (Simon & Schuster, 181 pages, $18).

Corcoran, former top editor at Golf Illustrated and author of several books, principally about golf, has put together a charming, somewhat quirky, thoroughly readable narrative of the life and times, still very much ongoing, of Old Glory. His book draws in a great deal of history, brought together in a manner that is both solidly professional and breezy. In a post 9 / 11 season that has witnessed a greater proliferation of flag display than -- it must be assumed -- any time in U.S. history, this concise volume is a worthy entertainment and a nourishing source of patriotic lore.