Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
A bestselling British author's American debut--in this brilliantly illuminating work exploring the realities and legacies of empire, Sathnam Sanghera demonstrates how so much of what we consider to be modern Britain is actually rooted in its imperial past.
In prose that is at once both clear-eyed and full of acerbic wit, Sanghera shows how the past is everywhere in the United Kingdom, also drawing critical links to similarities in the United States and around the world. Empire--British or otherwise--informs nearly everything, from common thought processes to the routines that shape everyday life, from the foundation of the National Health Service (NHS), to the nature of racism in the UK, from the British distrust of intellectuals in public life to the exceptionalism that imbued the campaign for Brexit, and the government's early response to the Covid crisis--all while empire is a subject shockingly obscured from view. Revelatory and lucid, Sanghera suggests that cultivating a new, more honest relationship to the past is essential in moving forward.
Synopsis
A best-selling journalist's illuminating tour through the hidden legacies and modern realities of British empire that exposes how much of the present-day United Kingdom is actually rooted in its colonial past. Empireland boldly and lucidly makes the case that in order to understand America, we must first understand British imperialism. Empire--whether British or otherwise--informs nearly everything we do. From common thought to our daily routines; from the foundations of social safety nets to the realities of racism; and from the distrust of public intellectuals to the exceptionalism that permeates immigration debates, the Brexit campaign and the global reckonings with controversial memorials, Empireland shows how the pernicious legacy of Western imperialism undergirds our everyday lives, yet remains shockingly obscured from view.
In accessible, witty prose, award-winning journalist and best-selling author Sathnam Sanghera traces this legacy back to its source, exposing how--in both profound and innocuous ways--imperial domination has shaped the United Kingdom we know today. Sanghera connects the historical dots across continents and seas to show how the shadows of a colonial past still linger over modern-day Britain and how the world, in turn, was shaped by Britain's looming hand. The implications, of course, extend to Britain's most notorious former colony turned imperial power: the United States of America, which prides itself for its maverick soul and yet seems to have inherited all the ambition, brutality and exceptional thinking of its parent.
With a new introduction by the author and a foreword by Booker Prize-winner Marlon James, Empireland is a revelatory and lucid work of political history that offers a sobering appraisal of the past so we may move toward a more just future.