'Schama is a genius of storytelling, A historian who radiates such anticipated pleasure is a rare thing. We are lucky to have him' Peter Stothard, The Times The American Future traces the history of a country whose most enduring trait is its capacity self-renewal, especially at times of disaster. Examining issues of power, race and immigration, religious fervour and prosperity, this masterful portrait of the world's most controversial superpower looks backwards and forwards to understand why now, more than ever, the fate of America, and by extension the rest of the world, is hanging in the balance. ' The American Future shares Kerouac's almost inebriated eloquence, the words tumbling delightfully across the page, the sentences as playfully ornate as Charlie Parker saxophone solos. As you read you almost feel like shouting: "Go, man, go!" Yet it is also an inspiring and illuminating work of history, a reflection on the essence of America with a bedrock of deep knowledge behind the bebop prose. Schama's genius lies in the way he uses micro-historical, human-scale narratives to make his big analytical points. Every one of the book's chapters will tell you something new about the American past, and each nugget will alter your view of the American future' Niall Ferguson, Financial Times 'This is the most exhilarating book that has been written about America for at least eight years. ebulliently combative.

instantly engaging.weaving the immediate present with its earliest history.Schama has delivered a glittering tale of America's past' Spectator 'A wonderfully thought-provoking book. Schama continually illuminates the broad sweep of events with reference to telling details.fascinating' Daily Express.