It’s not an easy thing to tell the history of a nation. And, in fact, there are many different ways to do so. At least when it comes to the history of Western nations, the past few years seem to have marked a great shift in this regard. When I was young, the history of these nations was usually told in the voice of triumph—what they had done well defined their story while what they had done poorly was mostly overlooked. Today, the history of these nations seems to be told in the voice of shame—what nations have done poorly defines their story while what they have done well is largely overlooked. Which is to say, the way I learned history in the 80s is very different from the way kids learn history today.
The truth, of course, lies somewhere between these poles. Nations are made up of human beings and, therefore, their histories are full of great triumphs, great horrors, and great contradictions between the two. This is the tension any historian faces, and the tension Wilfred McClay faced in preparing Land of Hope: An Invitation to the Great American Story, his new telling of the history
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