Redefining American Identity

' Railton redefines American identity, adding to traditional and multicultural narratives a third possibility: cross-cultural transformation. Recommended. ' CHOICE

" Benjamin Railton' s book offers a novel framework for understanding the formation of individual and national identity. Railton' s approach is fresh and compelling, and his textual readings are nuanced and persuasive. In all, the book contributes significantly to the scholarship in a variety of disciplines and interdisciplines, including American and ethnic studies, American literature, and American history. " - David S. Goldstein, Director of the Teaching and Learning Center and Senior Lecturer of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences, University of Washington, Bothell" There' s much to admire in the details of Ben Railton' s book, the illuminating analyses of figures as diverse as the early explorer Cabeza de Vaca and the American President Barack Obama, the surprising links Railton finds among those figures. But there' s still more to admire in the way Railton has defined his large topic of American identity, the freshness and capaciousness of that definition. Sometimes defining a topic is itself a significant intellectual accomplishment, and that' s what it is here; Railton' s definition will help us understand where we live. " - Lawrence Rosenwald, Professor of English, Wellesley College