“What is ‘the American idea’? It is the fractious, maddening approach to the conduct of human affairs that values equality despite its elusiveness, that values democracy despite its debasement, that values pluralism despite its messiness, that values the institutions of civic culture despite their flaws, and that values public life as something higher and greater than the sum of all our private lives. The founders of the magazine valued these things—and they valued the immense amount of effort it takes to preserve them from generation to generation.”

--The Editors of The Atlantic Monthly, 2006

This landmark collection of writings by the illustrious contributors of The Atlantic Monthly is a one-of-a-kind education in the history of American ideas.

The Atlantic Monthly was founded in 1857 by a remarkable group that included some of the towering figures of nineteenth-century intellectual life: Ralph Waldo Emerson, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, and James Russell Lowell.For 150 years, the magazine has continued to honor its distinguished pedigree by publishing many of America’s most prominent political commentators, journalists, historians, humorists, storytellers, and poets.

Throughout the magazine’s history, Atlantic contributors have unflinchingly confronted the fundamental subjects of the American experience: war and peace, science and religion, the conundrum of race, the role of women, the plight of the cities, the struggle to preserve the environment, the strengths and failings of our politics, and, especially, America’s proper place in the world.

This extraordinary anthology brings together many of the magazine’s most acclaimed and influential articles. “Broken Windows,” by James Q. Wilson and George L. Kelling, took on the problem of inner-city crime and gave birth to a new way of thinking about law enforcement. “The Roots of Muslim Rage,” by Bernard Lewis, prophetically warned of the dangers posed to the West by rising Islamic extremism. “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” by Martin Luther King, Jr., became one of the twentieth century’s most famous reflections upon—and calls for—racial equality. And “The Fifty-first State,” by James Fallows, previewed in astonishing detailthe mess in which America would find itself in Iraqa full six months before the invasion.The collection also highlights some of The Atlantic’s finest moments in fiction and poetry—from the likes of Twain, Whitman, Frost, Hemingway, Nabokov, and Bellow—affirming the central role of literature in defining and challenging American society.

Rarely has an anthology so vividly captured America. Serious and comic, touching and tough, The American Idea paints a fascinating portrait of who we are, where we have come from, and where we are going.

"This is a glorious collection. The Atlantic has been at the fore of America's intellectual and literary life for 150 years, and these pieces show how the spirit of Twain and Holmes has remained alive. It's an addictive offering."

-- Walter Isaacson, author of Einstein: His Life and Universe

"From the Civil War through the War on Terror, The Atlantic Monthly has moderated a civilized and intelligent debate over what it means to be an American. This anthology expertly guides the reader through that conversation with headnotes that provide invaluable context to each piece. Reading The American Idea one marvels at the vital role The Atlantic has played not only in the history of American magazines, but in the history of the country itself."

--Robert S. Boynton, author of The New New Journalism and director of the magazine writing program at New York University's Department of Journalism

"This scintillating, infinitely varied and irresistibly readable collection of the best writing published in The Atlantic Monthly over the last 150 years is a revelation – of the quality of writing that a magazine can aspire to, and achieve, with stunning frequency; and of the power of words, occasional and otherwise, to make you think, laugh, shudder, wonder, and feel. The effect of browsing through this astonishing collection is to have one’s faith in American culture and the republic of letters restored. The introductory headnotes briefly sketching how and in what context each piece came to press are invaluable."

-- Ric Burns, documentary filmmaker

"Readers can see the nation through the eyes of its finest writers, such as Mark Twain, Henry James, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Walt Whitman, Martin Luther King, Jr., Helen Keller and, from more recent days, William Least Heat-Moon, Garrison Keillor and William Langewiesche, all of whose work shows up in this remarkable anthology."

--Julia Keller, The Chicago Tribune

Published in celebration of the 150th birthday of "The Atlantic Monthly," this extraordinary anthology brings together 100 of the magazines most acclaimed and influential articles, essays, stories, and poems by the writers and thinkers who have shaped our history.

What is 'the American idea'? It is the fractious, maddening approach to the conduct of human affairs that values equality despite its elusiveness, that values democracy despite its debasement, that values pluralism despite its messiness, that values the institutions of civic culture despite their flaws, and that values public life as something higher and greater than the sum of all our private lives. The founders of the magazine valued these things--and they valued the immense amount of effort it takes to preserve them from generation to generation.

--The Editors of The Atlantic Monthly, 2006

This landmark collection of writings by the illustrious contributors of The Atlantic Monthly is a one-of-a-kind education in the history of American ideas.

The Atlantic Monthly was founded in 1857 by a remarkable group that included some of the towering figures of nineteenth-century intellectual life: Ralph Waldo Emerson, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, and James Russell Lowell.For 150 years, the magazine has continued to honor its distinguished pedigree by publishing many of America's most prominent political commentators, journalists, historians, humorists, storytellers, and poets.

Throughout the magazine's history, Atlantic contributors have unflinchingly confronted the fundamental subjects of the American experience: war and peace, science and religion, the conundrum of race, the role of women, the plight of the cities, the struggle to preserve the environment, the strengths and failings of our politics, and, especially, America's proper place in the world.

This extraordinary anthology brings together many of the magazine's most acclaimed andinfluential articles. Broken Windows, by James Q. Wilson and George L. Kelling, took on the problem of inner-city crime and gave birth to a new way of thinking about law enforcement. The Roots of Muslim Rage, by Bernard Lewis, prophetically warned of the dangers posed to the West by rising Islamic extremism. Letter from Birmingham Jail, by Martin Luther King, Jr., became one of the twentieth century's most famous reflections upon--and calls for--racial equality. And The Fifty-first State, by James Fallows, previewed in astonishing detailthe mess in which America would find itself in Iraqa full six months before the invasion.The collection also highlights some of The Atlantic's finest moments in fiction and poetry--from the likes of Twain, Whitman, Frost, Hemingway, Nabokov, and Bellow--affirming the central role of literature in defining and challenging American society.

Rarely has an anthology so vividly captured America. Serious and comic, touching and tough, The American Idea paints a fascinating portrait of who we are, where we have come from, and where we are going.

ROBERT VARE is the editor at large of The Atlantic Monthly and a former editor at The New Yorker, theNew York Times Magazine, and Rolling Stone.