“Rediscovering America makes available in English for the first time a varied sampling of writings about the United States by Japanese observers from many different walks of life.” – Robert Tierney, author of Tropics of Savagery: The Culture of Japanese Empire in Comparative Frame “Rediscovering America is a splendid collection of Japanese writings on "the American century," covering the period from 1868 to 1989 (from the Meiji to the Showa eras in Japanese calendar). Many of the issues raised by the authors are still heard today,” – Akira Iriye, author of Across the Pacific: An Inner History of American-East Asian Relations

Ever wonder why everyone wants to immigrate to America? Rediscovering America answers that question, and it’s like no other history you have ever read. More than an account of people, dates, and events, this story is about the hidden hand of a purposeful historical development where the main actors are colorful characters, participating in an American drama of little known but remarkable events where overcoming incredible odds of failure is more unbelievable and engaging than fiction. And while each chapter is a stand-alone tale—some quite wild—about what is behind each of the American holidays, the page- and chapter-turning appeal of Rediscovering America is in the narratives that link the holiday stories together, revealing an account of progress and redemption in America covering over four hundred years—never before told in a concise and readable book.

What is an American? Our diversity makes us unique. It also makes us strong. But from Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin to Ronald Reagan and James Baldwin, those born and raised in the land of the free share some common traits. Who exemplifies and who betrays America's promise? The three controversial essays in REDISCOVERING AMERICA ("America and the Perfectibility of Man," "James Baldwin: Loving and Leaving America," and "The Pattern American") examine the character of the United States as expressed in the writings of Crevecoeur, Benjamin Franklin, James Baldwin and other significant American figures. A history lesson as sophisticated as it is succinct.

Returning to the ideas of John Locke and the Founders themselves, Barbara A. McGraw examines the debate about the role of religion in American public life and unravels the confounded rhetoric on all sides. She reveals that no group has been standing on proper ground and that all sides have misused terminology (religion/secular), dichotomies (public/private), and concepts (separation of church and state) in ways that have little relevance to the original intentions of the Founders. She rediscovers a theology underlying the founding documents of the nation that is neither anyone's particular religion nor one requiring religion. Instead, it justifies freedom of conscience for all and provides a two-tiered public forum—a civic public forum and a conscientious public forum—for the debate itself and the actions that debate inspires. America's Sacred Ground—this theology and its public forum—determines the meaning of freedom and the ways in which Americans can pursue "the good": good government, good communities, good families, good relations between individuals, and good individuals from a plurality of perspectives. By exploring our past, McGraw answers the critical question, Who are we as a people and what do we stand for?

Whether his subject is the Russian influence in Hawaii or a Texas pirate immortalized by Byron, Kennedy's journey down the neglected byways of American history turns up a fascinating array of events, people, and places overlooked in conventional accounts of our past. 32 color photographs; 200 illustrations; maps.

A splendidly written and authoritative biography of one of America's greatest naturalists and the founder of the Sierra Club, illuminating Muir's colorful character and his unique environmental vision. First time in paperback. 16 black-and-white photographs.

In this vibrant, fact-packed romp through the last 100 years,Rediscovering Americaexplores the lost history of America, highlighting and reintegrating the complex contributions of women, African, Asian, Hispanic, and Native Americans, immigrants, artists, renegades, rebels, rogues, and others normally cast to the margins of history books, but without whom there is no honest accounting of American history. In an accessible timeline format, it paints an inclusive picture of our recent past, without sentiment or favor, respecting the true richness and complexity of 100 years in the life of a nation.