Book Reviews:

“Bravo, Bill Bradley! — for reminding us, so emphatically and with such insight, conviction, and plain old Missouri common sense, that a new American story is truly ours to choose.”
– David McCullough

“Bill Bradley is one of our most valuable public citizens. What he has given us in this wise and thoughtful book is a chilling portrait of a nation that has lost its way politically, economically, and socially — and a road map to help us find our way back.”
– David Halberstam

“Bill Bradley has always been a brilliant, original, and creative political thinker, and this book shows him at his best. The New American Story is a thoughtful, incisive blueprint for action at a moment that is a crossroads for America.”
– Robert A. Caro

“Bill Bradley’s book is a powerful call to arms — a wise, passionate, insightful polemic that everyone who is serious about politics and our country will read and debate in the months and years ahead.”
– Doris Kearns Goodwin

Taking advantage of his long and varied experience — and the credibility he earns because he's not running for office — Bradley appeals to Americans' better nature in a bid to recast politics. Lamenting the current cynicism that has divided the nation into red and blue states, Bradley aims to counter the conventional wisdom that the nation lacks the resources or the will to tackle problems. Recounting past national glories, Bradley proposes a new American story that focuses on the realities, not scare tactics or rosy political spin. He offers a specific agenda to help the U.S. find a place in the world that is not determined by military might but by a "civil religion" that works to improve common conditions for all nations. The current focus on the war in Iraq has distracted the U.S. from attending to growing tensions between Japan and China, the rise of anti-Americanism in South America, and the proliferation of nuclear weapons, among a host of other crucial developments. On the domestic front, Bradley advocates health care for every American, higher teacher salaries, lower employment taxes, and publicly funded congressional and presidential elections, among other policies. Bradley appeals to both Democrats and Republicans — and individual citizens — to seize the current moment to reshape the nation's direction. Bradley, former professional basketball player, U.S. senator, and presidential candidate, offers a thoughtful look at American politics for citizens of whatever political persuasion.
- From Booklist - Vanessa Bush - Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved.