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Beautiful Country Burn Again: Democracy, Rebellion, and Revolution Kindle Edition

4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 91 ratings

In a sweeping work of reportage set over the course of 2016, New York Times bestselling author Ben Fountain recounts a surreal year of politics and an exploration of the third American existential crisis

Twice before in its history, the United States has been faced with a crisis so severe it was forced to reinvent itself in order to survive: first, the struggle over slavery, culminating in the Civil War, and the second, the Great Depression, which led to President Roosevelt’s New Deal and the establishment of America as a social-democratic state. In a sequence of essays that excavate the past while laying bare the political upheaval of 2016, Ben Fountain argues that the United States may be facing a third existential crisis, one that will require a “burning” of the old order as America attempts to remake itself.

Beautiful Country Burn Again narrates a shocking year in American politics, moving from the early days of the Iowa Caucus to the crystalizing moments of the Democratic and Republican national conventions, and culminating in the aftershocks of the weeks following election night. Along the way, Fountain probes deeply into history, illuminating the forces and watershed moments of the past that mirror and precipitated the present, from the hollowed-out notion of the American Dream, to Richard Nixon’s southern strategy, to our weaponized new conception of American exceptionalism, to the cult of celebrity that gave rise to Donald Trump.

In an urgent and deeply incisive voice, Ben Fountain has fused history and the present day to paint a startling portrait of the state of our nation.  Beautiful Country Burn Again is a searing indictment of how we came to this point, and where we may be headed.


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Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk
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Beautiful Country Burn Again
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Brief Encounters with Che Guevara
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“There may be no writer alive today who better captures the manic, fevered, paranoid style in 21st-century America than Ben Fountain.” — Rolling Stone

“Brilliantly argued and authoritatively illustrated.... There’s no one I would rather read on Where We Are Now.... If this country can find writers like Ben Fountain to chronicle its most miserable hours, it can’t be all bad. — Los Angeles Review of Books

“What on earth happened in and to the United States in 2016? And why did it happen? In “Beautiful Country Burn Again,” Fountain confronts both these riddles in creative and provocative ways that force a reader to think hard about the sudden disappearance of familiar patterns of politics and government.” — Washington Post

“[Fountain] is not only a sharp writer but an astute observer of the human condition. And, it turns out, he’s got a sharp mind for politics and history, too.... The book is a captivating read — often humorous, infuriating, and depressing all at the same time.” — Texas Observer

“The reality of US politics outdistanced the wildest extravagances of imagination a long time ago, which is only one of a hundred deft, discomfiting points Fountain makes. In today’s superheated political climate, fairness and perspective are hard to come, but Fountain manages to take a relatively measured view.” — Boston Globe

“As a stylist, Fountain combines the talents of Ambrose Bierce, Norman Mailer, and Hunter Thompson.... A penetrating critique of a contemporary American politics thoroughly corrupted by money.... Ben Fountain’s voice—enraged, unsparing, unrelenting, acutely attuned to hypocrisy, and suffused with wit—invests his testimony with an authority that commands respect.” — Commonweal

“Fountain vents [his] grievances with eloquence and bite.... steeped in history as well as outrage. — Dallas News

“Pithy and profound.... Fountain’s mix of salient lessons from the past and essential guideposts for the future is a must-have addition to the “how did we get here” canon of political scrutiny in and of the age of Trump.”
Booklist (starred review)

“Fountain’s vivid prose shows the novelist’s knack for revealing character through gesture and physicality.... Whip-smart and searching in its indictment of cant and falsity, this is perhaps the best portrait yet of an astounding election.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“[Fountain’s] words are emotional and powerful. While Donald Trump and those who enable him are primary targets, no one escapes his criticism, including much of the American electorate. Beautiful Country Burn Again has the potential to arm the body politic with their greatest weapon--knowledge.” — Shelf Awareness

“Sometimes it takes a novelist to capture a world gone mad...With clarity of mind and the most observant of eyes, Fountain gives us a memorable and unique portrait of...an American moment which is likely to shape us for far longer than any of us would like to contemplate.” — Jon Meacham, author of The Soul of America: The Battle for Our Better Angels

“A masterpiece of a book, the true story of American possibility...So smart, so funny, so well-researched, so brilliantly argued, so scathing and at times shaming and, most of all, morally honest...I hope every word will find its way into the coarsening minds and hearts of every American.” — David Finkel, author of Thank You For Your Service

“Thank God for Ben Fountain...Here is a quirky truth teller, a creative, who is attempting to steer America on a path that will bring some goodness to the most of us. Beautiful Country Burn Again is...written with a novelist’s skill of heart and with a researcher’s expertise.” — Tiphanie Yanique, author of Land of Love and Drowning

“The force and beauty of Fountain’s writing, his clear-eyed fury, his commitment to what is great about the American idea, make for exhilarating reading. A book for right now, and for all the fires next time.” — Alma Guillermoprieto, author of Dancing with Cuba: A Memoir of the Revolution

“The author covers events much like an especially woke journalist... For most readers, Fountain will offer fresh insights...The author’s masterful original phrasings make the book worthwhile, urgent, and timely.” — Kirkus Reviews

“Fountain brings a unique and thoughtful assessment to the subject matter. With fluid, captivating writing and hilarious quotes and descriptions, he details each candidate’s foibles.... [Fountain] clearly illustrates how a cultural undercurrent of divisive economic interests... is once again driving a populist surge against the status quo.” — Seattle Times

From the Back Cover

Twice before in its history, the United States has been faced with a crisis so severe it was forced to reinvent itself in order to survive: first was the struggle over slavery, culminating in the Civil War, and second was the Great Depression, which led to the New Deal. In a sweeping work of reportage that lays bare the political upheaval of 2016, bestselling author Ben Fountain argues that the United States may be facing a third existential crisis, one that will again require a “burning” of the old order.

Beautiful Country Burn Again narrates a shocking year in American politics, moving from the early days of the Iowa caucus to the aftershocks following election night. Along the way, Fountain probes deeply into history, illuminating the forces and watershed moments of the past that mirror and precipitated the present. In an urgent and deeply incisive voice, Fountain paints a startling portrait of the state of our nation, offering a searing indictment of how we came to this point and where we may be headed.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B074Z4W5TY
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Ecco (September 25, 2018)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ September 25, 2018
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 7.7 MB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 445 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 91 ratings

About the author

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Ben Fountain
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Ben Fountain's novel BILLY LYNN'S LONG HALFTIME WALK received the National Book Critics' Circle Award, the Los Angeles Times Book Award, the Flaherty-Dunnan First Novel Award, the PEN/New England Cerulli Award for Excellence in Sports Writing, and the Jesse Jones Award for fiction from the Texas Institute of Letters, and was a finalist for the National Book Award in both the US and the UK (international authors division). The film adaptation of BILLY LYNN, directed by three-time Oscar winner Ang Lee, was released in 2016 by Sony Pictures. Fountain's short story collection BRIEF ENCOUNTERS WITH CHE GUEVARA received the PEN/Hemingway Award, the Barnes & Noble Discover Award for Fiction, and a Whiting Writers Award. Fountain's short fiction has appeared in Harper's, Zoetrope: All-Story, the Paris Review, Esquire, the Sewanee Review, DALLAS NOIR, and HAITI NOIR II, among other publications. His nonfiction has appeared in the New York Times, the New York Times Magazine, the Guardian, the Wall Street Journal, Le Monde, Texas Monthly, and elsewhere, and his reportage on post-earthquake Haiti was broadcast on the radio show This American Life. Fountain grew up in the tobacco country of eastern North Carolina, and is a graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill and Duke University Law School. A former attorney in private practice, he has lived in Dallas, Texas for over thirty years. In September, 2018, Ecco/HarperCollins will publish Fountain's nonfiction book BEAUTIFUL COUNTRY BURN AGAIN, which is based on his reportage for the Guardian of the US presidential campaign of 2016.

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
91 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the book informative and well-researched. They appreciate the clear writing style and passionate descriptions of history. The book is described as a great read with excellent craft. Readers mention it provides time frames for reference and is a good way to catch up on history.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

9 customers mention "Information quality"9 positive0 negative

Customers find the book informative and well-researched. They appreciate the author's skill in combining history and personal anecdotes to create a clear-eyed political analysis and a good recapitulation of the 2016 Presidential election from an outraged perspective. The book is described as the best political book they have read this season.

"...pushed by a tailwind of history, and Ben Fountain does a great job of parsing out history and personal anecdote to create a timely explantation of..." Read more

"Ben Fountain’s “Beautiful Country Burn Again” is a searing critique of American politics as seen through the lens of the election of 2016...." Read more

"...It should be a very helpful source for historians attempting to recount this era in American history." Read more

"...thoroughly and convincingly. Being well and truthfully informed is key in a democracy, and this book gives you just that...." Read more

6 customers mention "Writing quality"6 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the writing quality. They find it well-written, passionate, and clear. The book reads effortlessly on a stressful topic, with illustrations of news from the periods in the campaigns to establish independence. Readers appreciate the lyrical writing and grim exposition.

"...What a strange mixture this book is, of lyrical writing and grim exposition...." Read more

"...The book contains many illustrations of news of the periods in the campaigns to establish time frames for reference - lots of information and humor...." Read more

"This book reads effortlessly on a stressful topic- the failure of the American experiment..." Read more

"Beautiful passionate writing, clear description of how we got into our present mess starting with the Goldwater/Reagan revolution...." Read more

4 customers mention "Craft"4 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the book's writing style. They find the conclusions excellent and praise the writing as well-written.

"...of Fountain’s observances, he writes his conclusions with such excellent craft that they demand recognition." Read more

"Excellent & Terrifying - READ THIS BOOK..." Read more

"Awesome and timely book..." Read more

"Bravo, well written...." Read more

3 customers mention "Time frame"3 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the book's time frame. It provides a reference for historical periods and information.

"...of news of the periods in the campaigns to establish time frames for reference - lots of information and humor...." Read more

"If you've forgotten, or have ignored, history, this is a good way to catch up. Unfortunately we are at the end of another 80 +/- year cycle." Read more

"Awesome and timely book..." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • Reviewed in the United States on September 27, 2018
    I think many of us are tired of the narrative that Trump stinks and that we’ve all gotten to this precarious place in American politics because of skulduggery and fake news. We have arrived in this uncharted sea because we were pushed by a tailwind of history, and Ben Fountain does a great job of parsing out history and personal anecdote to create a timely explantation of our current moment in this (hopefully) long experiment in justice, equality, and moral toe-dipping. If you want a book that condemns Donald Trump, this isn't your song. If you want a book that tells you that you’re a great person for opposing Trump and that your neighbors were all drunk on Fox News hooch, this isn't the book. What Fountain does in this book is attempt to frame our current political upheaval in a historical context, and he does that with virtuosity.
    67 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on November 24, 2019
    Ben Fountain’s “Beautiful Country Burn Again” is a searing critique of American politics as seen through the lens of the election of 2016. This was the year of Trump and the splitting of the American consensus.

    The technique employed by Fountain is to write a brief resume of the events of each month of 2016 in chronological order followed by an analysis of various aspects of America’s history. Here he begins in Iowa but proceeds to jump around to discuss such matters as American exceptionalism, racism, and dreams whilst blending it all together to try to understand how America came to elect Trump. This is no easy task. Fountain, however, manages to pull off the stunt. It’s a high wire act without a safety net but Fountain succeeds.

    America is a great country. This has been its history. But will it be America’s future? Fountain is sceptical. Change will be required. The country has become too divided on so many levels. There is the growing gap between rich and poor where no amount of mouthing facile lines to “make America great again” will address the matter. There is also the ongoing racial divide. Yes, America elected a black President but the subsequent backlash and the election of a birtherism advocate has done much damage to the body politic. Black lives do matter but many US citizens question such an obvious claim. In America today, there is a denial of history unless it conforms to the re-imagination of a Beaver Cleaver past.

    There are many people who will disagree with the argument pursued by Fountain. However, to offer a meaningful challenge will prove to be a difficult task.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on November 18, 2018
    We all know some of why Trump won. He tapped into Washington's neglect of the heartland, he appeals to our fears and bigotry. He successfully demonizes enemies and boasts how he'll make us great again.

    But how could he have convinced enough of us? His preposterous and spectacular hypocrisy, his many failures as a husband, father and businessman (even his wealth seems to have been given by or taken from his father), his ignorance of nearly everything except how to convince us he's the master of everything, his strategy of treating everyone as a Dixie cup (drink 'em empty and throw 'em out) - how did we and do we continue to fall for it?

    The beautifully titled Beautiful Country Burn Again weaves all the necessary threads of understanding together - our entrenched racism, the total failure of the last 40 years to continue the economic, equally-spread gains of the previous 40, Trump's masterful ability to exploit the worst in us, Clinton's failure to evolve from her swamp-swimming ways. The result is one of those rare moments where I slump back with an oh my god, THIS explains our reality, THIS is why, THIS is the guts of our national crisis.

    I didn't find prescriptions as to how we should try to Burn Again. The Civil War and the Great Depression are two examples of how we have burned. There is a clear sense of what's at risk. Historical and political consciousness are now very high and rising. Should Trump and the plutocrats succeed in closing the bars of the jail tight on the widespread rage and the blatant inequality, we'll lose the best of the possibility of America.

    What a strange mixture this book is, of lyrical writing and grim exposition. A lesser author might cause readers to be so distressed by the relentless peeling of the American onions to skip through it fast or set it aside. Fountain makes it a can't-put-it-down page turner. Very highly recommended.
    15 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on December 6, 2018
    A look within the lead up to and conclusion of the last Presidential election. This surfaces many, many questions about who we are, who we purport to be, and who we should be as Americans. The more we change, it seems the less we grow, and the more so many harken back to comfort they recollect of days past, when we were “great”. Greatness doesn’t come by excluding people or withdrawing from the world. We need and deserve so much more than what is being handed to us as truth and a sickening new world view. We can’t thrive without challenging & reshaping America to be better than what we’re experiencing now.
    4 people found this helpful
    Report
  • Reviewed in the United States on November 5, 2018
    Where have you heard that before? Well, in this case it is TRUE. Although the author admits his preference he manages to skewer both candidates. The book contains many illustrations of news of the periods in the campaigns to establish time frames for reference - lots of information and humor. It should be a very helpful source for historians attempting to recount this era in American history.
    5 people found this helpful
    Report
  • Reviewed in the United States on December 9, 2020
    We've heard some of the observations before, but this book fillls it all in,
    thoroughly and convincingly. Being well and truthfully informed is key
    in a democracy, and this book gives you just that. Realized more than before,
    we're in deep trouble now... and it's been brewing for decades. Doubt that baby
    boomers will live to see the end of this dark period of US history in the making.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on December 26, 2019
    For those not a fan of Donald Trump be prepared to not finish or keep Prozac handy. For those who are fans ….. well don't buy this or if you do you won't believe it or perhaps care. If you are looking for more humor try "Commander in Cheat" or "Trump and Me".

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