The Broken Heart of America: St. Louis and the Violent History of the United States
A searing portrait of the racial dynamics that lie inescapably at the heart of our nation, told through the turbulent history of the city of St. Louis.
From Lewis and Clark's 1804 expedition to the 2014 uprising in Ferguson, American history has been made in St. Louis. And as Walter Johnson shows in this searing book, the city exemplifies how imperialism, racism, and capitalism have persistently entwined to corrupt the nation's past.
St. Louis was a staging post for Indian removal and imperial expansion, and its wealth grew on the backs of its poor black residents, from slavery through redlining and urban renewal. But it was once also America's most radical city, home to anti-capitalist immigrants, the Civil War's first general emancipation, and the nation's first general strike -- a legacy of resistance that endures.
A blistering history of a city's rise and decline, The Broken Heart of America will forever change how we think about the United States.
Earn by promoting books
Earn money by sharing your favorite books through our Affiliate program.
Become an affiliate
"A magisterial history of the emergence and development of racial capitalism and the rise and decline of American empire examined through the lens of St. Louis...The Broken Heart of America tells the best story of America that we have in the spirit of W. E. B. Du Bois. Walter Johnson is one of our very few great US historians!"
-- "Cornel West, New York Times bestselling author""A narrative of unrelenting, justified outrage grounded in impressive scholarship...Every chapter includes searing, unforgettable examples...The epilogue offers hope, however minimal...A well-rendered, incisive exploration."
-- "Kirkus Reviews (starred review)""A masterpiece that both haunts and inspires...a story that powerfully lifts up the human beings who, in 2014, stood together in Ferguson to demand accountability for the layered injustices that have so scarred not just one city--but America itself."
-- "Heather Ann Thompson, Pulitzer Prize-winning author"
![The Bean Book: 100 Recipes for Cooking with All Kinds of Beans, from the Rancho Gordo Kitchen [A Cookbook]](https://images-us.bookshop.org/ingram/9781984860002.jpg?height=250&v=v2-7400cb3badc696c5c26291bab7b06b47)
