Philip Furia, Irving Berlin: A Life in Song (2000)
There are several solid Berlin biographies, but this is the shortest and perhaps most accessible for the reader interested in an introduction to the songwriting icon. Furia is an academic, but his account of Berlin’s life from the streets of New York and Tin Pan Alley to the glitz of Hollywood is highly readable and entertaining.
Kathleen E. R. Smith, God Bless America: Tin Pan Alley Goes to War (2003)
During World War II, Americans listened to almost five hours of radio music daily. This fact frames Smith's exploration of the popular music written and released during the war years.