The Men Who United the States

From bestselling author Simon Winchester, the extraordinary story of how America was united into a single nation.

For more than two centuries, E pluribus unum – out of many, one – has been featured on America’s official government seals and stamped on its currency. But how did America become ‘one nation, indivisible’? In this monumental history, Simon Winchester addresses this question, introducing the fearless trailblazers whose achievements forged and unified America.

Winchester follows in the footsteps of America’s most essential explorers, thinkers, and innovators. He treks vast swaths of territory, introducing these fascinating pioneers – some, such as Washington and Jefferson, Lewis and Clark being familiar, some forgotten, some hardly known – who played a pivotal role in creating today’s United States. Throughout, he ponders whether the historic work of uniting the States has succeeded, and to what degree.

‘The Men Who United the States’ is a fresh, lively, and erudite look at the way in which the most powerful nation on earth came together, from one of our most entertaining, probing, and insightful observers.

Reviews

‘Winchester achieves something remarkable here … ‘The Men Who United the States’ is not only readable, it’s compelling and quite marvellous reading’ Literary Review

‘Winchester pioneered the genre of popular narrative history … His admiration for his adopted homeland, and respect for those who forged it, shine out from every page … [he] understands that specificity is what counts, as it always does in writing’ Sunday Telegraph

‘Simon Winchester is a literary impresario … The subtitle promises readers a sackful of exciting tales – and the author delivers. This is a clever, engaging and original look at what would seem well-trodden historical paths; but Winchester, delightfully, breaks a fresh trail’ Economist

‘An imaginative piece of historical writing, interwoven with memoir. But it is, in the end, more than either of those things: it is a love poem to the American landscape and to the spirit of people’ BBC History Magazine

‘A rousing tribute to the alliances, agencies, and inventions – from Lewis and Clark to the Internet – that underpin our more perfect union. A stunning, highly original feast of a book.’
Stacy Schiff

‘Simon Winchester never disappoints, and ‘The Men Who United the States’ is a lively and surprising account of how this sprawling piece of geography became a nation. This is America from the ground up. Inspiring and engaging.’
Tom Brokaw

About the author

Simon Winchester is the bestselling author of ‘Atlantic’, ‘The Man Who Loved China’, ‘A Crack in the Edge of the World’, ‘Krakatoa’, ‘The Map That Changed the World’, ‘The Surgeon of Crowthorne’ (’The Professor and the Madman’), ‘The Fracture Zone’, ‘Outposts’ and ‘Korea’, among many other titles. In 2006 he was awarded the OBE. He lives in western Massachusetts and New York City.