To rescue the future, we must remember our past.

With command and wit, William J. Bennett reacquaints Americans with their heritage in an engaging narrative that cuts through the cobwebs of time, memory, and prevailing cynicism. Washington, Franklin, Lincoln, Roosevelt, and others reemerge not as marble icons or dust-dry names in a textbook, but as full-blooded, heroic pioneers whose far-reaching vision forged a nation that attracted - that still attracts - millions yearning to breathe free. In this, the first volume of a "reasoned, balanced presentation of the American story", Bennett tells our nation's story, with all its triumphs and tragedies. He summons us to embrace America's cause once again as "the last best hope of earth".

What others are saying:

"William J. Bennett artfully and subtly makes connections between our past and current events, reminding us...that we are intimately and immediately connected to the extraordinary Americans who have bestowed upon us our great heritage.... [T]he importance of America: The Last Best Hope probably exceeds anything Dr. Bennett has ever written, and it is more elegantly crafted and eminently readable than any comprehensive work of history I've read in a very long time. It's silly to compare great works of history to great novels, but this book truly is a page-turner.... Prepare to have your faith in, hope for, and love of America renewed." (Brad Miner, American Compass)

"The role of history is to inform, inspire, and sometimes provoke us, which is why Bill Bennett's wonderfully readable book is so important. He puts our nation's triumphs, along with its lapses, into the context of a narrative about the progress of freedom. Every now and then it's useful to be reminded that we are a fortunate people, blessed with generations of leaders who repeatedly renewed the meaning of America." (Walter Isaacson, Benjamin Franklin: An American Life)

"For too long Americans have been looking for a history of our country that tells the story of America's triumphs as well as its tragedies. Now Bill Bennett has come forward with America: The Last Best Hope, which tells the story - fairly and fully - from 1492 to 1914. Americans who have been reading recent biographies of the Founding Fathers will love this book." (Michael Barone, US News & World Report)

"Bill Bennett's book will stand as perhaps the most important addition to American scholarship at this, the start of the new century. For the past 50 years American historians have either distorted American history or reduced it to a mess of boring indictments of our cultural and political heritage. With this book Bennett offers to Americans young and old an exciting and enjoyable history of what makes America the greatest nation on earth." (Brian Kennedy, president, The Claremont Institute)