Myth America Historians Take On the Biggest Legends and Lies About Our Past

by Kruse, Kevin M.; Zelizer, Julian E.

• ISBN13: 9781541601390
• ISBN10: 1541601394
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2023-01-03
• Publisher: Basic Books

Summary

In this instant New York Times bestseller, America’s top historians set the record straight on the most pernicious myths about our nation’s past.
 
The United States is in the grip of a crisis of bad history. Distortions of the past promoted in the conservative media have led large numbers of Americans to believe in fictions over facts, making constructive dialogue impossible and imperiling our democracy.  
 
In Myth America, Kevin M. Kruse and Julian E. Zelizer have assembled an all-star team of fellow historians to push back against this misinformation. The contributors debunk narratives that portray the New Deal and Great Society as failures, immigrants as hostile invaders, and feminists as anti-family warriors—among numerous other partisan lies. Based on a firm foundation of historical scholarship, their findings revitalize our understanding of American history. 
 
Replacing myths with research and reality, Myth America is essential reading amid today’s heated debates about our nation’s past. 

With Essays By

Akhil Reed Amar • Kathleen Belew • Carol Anderson • Kevin Kruse • Erika Lee • Daniel Immerwahr • Elizabeth Hinton • Naomi Oreskes • Erik M. Conway • Ari Kelman • Geraldo Cadava • David A. Bell • Joshua Zeitz • Sarah Churchwell • Michael Kazin • Karen L. Cox • Eric Rauchway • Glenda Gilmore • Natalia Mehlman Petrzela • Lawrence B. Glickman • Julian E. Zelizer

Author Biography

Kevin M. Kruse is a professor of history at Princeton University and the editor or author of five books, including White Flight and One Nation Under God. He lives in Princeton, New Jersey.  
  
Julian E. Zelizer is a professor of history and public affairs at Princeton University and the author and editor of numerous books, most recently Burning Down the House and Abraham Joshua Heschel. He lives in New York City.  

Table of Contents

Introduction by Kevin Kruse and Julian E. Zelizer
1. American Exceptionalism by David A. Bell
2. Founding Myths by Akhil Reed Amar
3. Vanishing Indians by Ari Kelman
4. Immigration by Erika Lee
5. America First by Sarah Churchwell
6. The United States is an Empire by Daniel Immerwahr
7. The Border by Geraldo Cadava
8. American Socialism by Michael Kazin
9. The Magic of the Marketplace by Naomi Oreskes and Erik M. Conway
10. The New Deal by Eric Rauchway
11. Confederate Monuments by Karen L. Cox
12. The Southern Strategy by Kevin Kruse
13. The Good Protest by Glenda Gilmore
14. White Backlash by Lawrence B. Glickman
15. The Great Society by Joshua Zeitz
16. Police Violence by Elizabeth Hinton
17. Insurrection by Kathleen Belew
18. Family Values Feminism by Natalia Mehlman Petrzela
19. Reagan Revolution by Julian E. Zelizer
20. Voter Fraud by Carol Anderson