A New York Times bestseller and “a passionate, urgent” ( The New Yorker ) examination of the growing inequality gap from the bestselling author of Bowling Alone : why fewer Americans today have the opportunity for upward mobility. Central to the very idea of America is the principle that we are a nation of opportunity. But over the last quarter century we have seen a disturbing “opportunity gap” emerge. We Americans have always believed that those who have talent and try hard will succeed, but this central tenet of the American Dream seems no longer true or at the least, much less true than it was. In Our Kids , Robert Putnam offers a personal and authoritative look at this new American crisis, beginning with the example of his high school class of 1959 in Port Clinton, Ohio. The vast majority of those students went on to lives better than those of their parents. But their children and grandchildren have faced diminishing prospects. Putnam tells the tale of lessening opportunity through poignant life stories of rich, middle class, and poor kids from cities and suburbs across the country, brilliantly blended with the latest social-science research. “A truly masterful volume” ( Financial Times ), Our Kids provides a disturbing account of the American dream that is “thoughtful and persuasive” ( The Economist). Our Kids offers a rare combination of individual testimony and rigorous evidence: “No one can finish this book and feel complacent about equal opportunity” ( The New York Times Book Review ).

A leading member of the Senate Judiciary Committee "spells out, in considerable detail, the extent of corporate influence over a variety of issues" in national politics ( The New Yorker ) As a U.S. senator and former federal prosecutor, Sheldon Whitehouse has had a front-row seat for the spectacle of dark money in government. In his widely praised book Captured , he describes how corporations buy influence over our government― not only over representatives and senators, but over the very regulators directly responsible for enforcing the laws under which these corporations operate, and over the judges and prosecutors who are supposed to be vigilant about protecting the public interest. In a case study that shows these operations at work, Whitehouse reveals how fossil fuel companies have held any regulation related to climate change at bay. The problem is structural: as Kirkus Reviews wrote, "many of the ills it illuminates are bipartisan." This paperback edition features a new preface by the author that reveals how corporate influence has taken advantage of Donald Trump's presidency to advance its agenda―and what we can do about it.

"A persuasive wake-up call.”— People A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER From the award-winning journalist Paul Tough, a provocative and profound examination of childhood success and character—an insightful study that reveals the power to transform young people’s lives. Why do some children succeed while others fail? The story we usually tell about childhood and success is the one about intelligence: success comes to those who score highest on tests, from preschool admissions to SATs. In How Children Succeed , Paul Tough argues that success has more to do with character—skills like perseverance, curiosity, optimism, and self-control. In this groundbreaking study, Tough introduces us to key researchers and educators, who, for the first time, are using the tools of science to peel back the mysteries of character. Through their stories—and the stories of the children they are trying to help—Tough reveals how character has the power to transform young people’s lives. This provocative and profoundly hopeful book will not only inspire and engage readers—it will also change our understanding of childhood itself.