American Rule

How a Nation Conquered the World but Failed Its People

By: Jared Yates Sexton

Narrated by: MacLeod Andrews

From writer and political analyst Jared Yates Sexton comes an eye-opening journey through American history that unearths and debunks the myths we've always told ourselves.

Recent years have brought a reckoning in America. As rampant political corruption, stark inequality, and violent bigotry have come to the fore, many have faced two vital questions: How did we get here? And how do we move forward?

An honest look at the past—and how it’s been covered up—is the only way to find the answers. Americans in power have abused and subjugated others since the nation’s very beginning, and myths of America’s unique goodness have both enabled that injustice and buried the truth for generations. In American Rule, Jared Yates Sexton blends deep research with stunning storytelling, digging into each era of growth and change that led us here—and laying bare the foundational myths at the heart of the American imagination.

Stirring, unequivocal, and impossible to put down, American Rule tells the truth about what this nation has always been—and challenges us to forge a new path.

Future Required Reading

American Rule is (at the time of writing this) the latest from literary critical thinker Jared Yates Sexton.

If you, like many of us, have been thinking “how did we get here,” this book will hopefully help you understand the problematic nature of that question in and of itself. The truth, once you peel back the veneer of the American myth we have all been steeped in (in major and minor ways) our whole lives, is that we always have been.

The best part about this book and this author, is you can trust all of the fingers are pointed deliberately in all of the directions. Just read it. I also gained a significant amount of fun facts for dropping knowledge as well, so you could also consider it relevant for all future family gatherings.

Mostly just ingest and digest this book, it deserves it. You won’t be disappointed.

Historical truth we need to hear

I loved every chapter from our past to our present. Every American needs to listen to this book to understand how we got here and how we can rise to be the democracy we thought we were, but always failed to be.

The behind-the-scenes information on the forming of the constitution.

I have a basic knowledge of the history of the United States. The information included was the type of information they don’t mention in the history books. I had an idea of some of the things which go on, but it is good to know the specifics.

The inconvenient truth

The inconvenient truth that Americans need to acknowledge. I love the timeline laid out and the historical capture that brings the totality of the subject into focus.

A Must Read for Everyone

Really opened my mind to understanding the true history of the United States. Frightening but essential reading to start us on a path towards getting better.