With this major new volume, Paul Krugman, today's most widely read economist, studies the past eighty years of American history. From the reforms that tamed the harsh inequality of the Gilded Age to the unraveling of that achievement, and the reemergence of immense economic and political inequality since the 1970s, Krugman delves deep.

Seeking to understand both what happened to middle-class America and what it will take to achieve a "new New Deal", Krugman has created his finest book to date. This work weaves together a nuanced account of three generations of history with sharp political, social, and economic analysis.

This book, written with Krugman's trademark ability to explain complex issues simply, will transform the debate about American social policy. It is a stimulating manifesto offering a compelling historical defense of liberalism and a clarion call for Americans to retake control of their economic destiny.