UNDERSTANDING AMERICA The Anatomy of an Exceptional Nation PETER H. SCHUCK AND JAMES Q. WILSON, EDITORS

"This book is thick, but it does the work of about a dozen, maybe more. With its gold-standard contributors and well chosen, authoritative essays, Understanding America captures more facets of our complicated country than I ever thought a single book could."
–Jonathan Rauch, Senior Writer, National Journal and guest scholar at the Brookings Institution

"An illuminating effort to explain America to the world—and to itself… A nuanced, warts-and-all portrait that offers much to ponder in this election year and beyond."
—Kirkus Reviews, STARRED

"What makes America unique? Peter Schuck and James Q. Wilson have assembled a first-class group of experts to set out, for every aspect of American life from political culture to philanthropy, how America stands apart from other nations, for better or worse."
—Michael Barone, Co-author, The Almanac of American Politics, Resident Fellow, American Enterprise Institute

"Understanding America is aimed in major part at foreign observers of the country. And it ought to be the first thing read by every ambassador coming to America to represent another country, and by every foreign leader and foreign minister. But it also ought to be required reading for every one of our presidential candidates, American ambassadors going abroad, and member of Congress. This marvelous book offers insights and revelations on almost every page for insiders and outside observers alike, for sophisticated "experts on American politics, culture and policy and for those who don't really understand what makes America tick. Nearly unique in an edited volume, very essay is clearly written and deftly drawn. If he were alive, Alexis De Toqueville would call it a tour de force."
—Norman Ornstein, Resident Scholar, American Enterprise Institute

"This compendium of essays by distinguished social scientists provides a more comprehensive and perhaps richer education in what academics call "American studies" than do most college courses in the field. It is two books in one: an unparalleled introduction to America's most distinctive attributes for observers from abroad and interested citizens alike; and a compendium of data and analysis supporting the ideas that America is unique among nations and that despite extremely grave problems, this "American exceptionalism" is often a good thing. Furthermore, these essays illuminate the nature of the challenges that America faces, and help lay the intellectual foundations for efforts to surmount them."
—Stuart Taylor, National Journal columnist and Newsweek contributor

"If the candidates want an authoritative up-to-date portrait of the vast, complex and endlessly fascinating country they hope to lead, this is the book for them."
-New York Times

"From start to finish, it's a highly worthwhile book."
-Daily Oklahoman