Nations Apart, Colin Woodard
Nations Apart, Colin Woodard
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Nations Apart
How Clashing Regional Cultures Shattered America

Author: Colin Woodard

Narrator: Ari Fliakos

Unabridged: 9 hr 16 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Penguin Audio

Published: 11/04/2025

Includes: Bonus Material Bonus Material Included

Synopsis

"A world-class intellectual. . . . [Colin Woodard’s] research can help Americans rediscover their common identity in spite of all the attempts to divide them." —Garry Kasparov

"A powerful paradigm for understanding the defining hot button issues of contemporary America and the action we can take to bridge our cultural divisions and save the republic." —The Next Big Idea Club

“A lucid exercise in political geography with tremendous—and disturbing—explanatory power.” —Kirkus Reviews

The bestselling author of American Nations reveals how centuries-old regional differences have brought American democracy to the brink of collapse and presents a powerful story that can bridge our cultural divisions and save the republic

Our democracy has been purposefully dismantled, first in the states and now at the federal level. With groundbreaking original data and historical insights, Nations Apart is an essential guide to understanding why Americans are so divided on many hot button issues, creating geographic fissures that have been exploited by authoritarians. Colin Woodard shows how colonial era settlement patterns and the cultural geography they left behind are at the root of our political polarization, economic inequality, public health crises, and democratic collapse.

Drawing on quantitative research from Woodard’s university-based think tank project, Nations Apart exposes the true ideological and cultural divides behind today’s struggles over:

* Gun control
* Immigration
* Health policy
* Abortion
* Climate Change
* History
* Authoritarianism and Democracy

But there is a road map to right the country: a carefully researched, vigorously tested common story for the country built on the mission set forth for us in the document that first bound our regions together, the Declaration of Independence. Combining compelling storytelling with scholarly vigor, Nations Apart offers a blueprint for bridging the rifts that divide us and ensuring the American dream of democratic self-government will reach its 300th birthday.

* This audiobook edition includes a downloadable PDF of maps and other images from the book.

About The Author

Colin Woodard, a New York Times bestselling author, historian, and award-winning journalist, is director of Nationhood Lab at Salve Regina University’s Pell Center for International Relations and Public Policy. He is the author of seven books that have been translated into a dozen languages and have inspired an NBC television drama. A longtime foreign correspondent, he reported from more than fifty countries on seven continents and, as an investigative reporter at Maine’s Portland Press Herald, won a 2012 George Polk Award and was a finalist for a 2016 Pulitzer Prize. His work has appeared in The New York Times, Politico, The Washington Post, The Economist, Smithsonian, and dozens of other major publications. A graduate of Tufts University and the University of Chicago, and a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, he lives in Maine.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Mark on November 13, 2025

(3.75) I’m of two minds with this book: on one hand, the thesis (that America’s division stems from smaller regional cultures—which are generally born out of colonial era settlements) is political science at its most crucial. However, Nations Apart is dry, bludgeoning the reader with statistics. It’......more

Goodreads review by David on November 14, 2025

Caveat Emptor: I am tolerant of all opinions except those of intolerance. Since the Cult of MAGA is built on intolerance, it is an evil that must be destroyed. . . .A world where reporters, public officials. election workers, and anyone the Leader regards as "vermin" are physically threatened or atta......more

Goodreads review by Mercy on November 07, 2025

I’m just going to say it. This book does not paint republicans in a good light. It does not paint the people who live in the Appalachians in a good light. It does not paint Trump or Trump supporters in a good light. If this will offend you… I agreed and disagreed with many statements in this book. I......more

Goodreads review by Carl on November 15, 2025

Wonderful. Just as interesting as his first book, American Nations, and it gives insight into the American regions, cultures, and influences. Highly recommend to those who enjoyed his first book and those interested in cultural history.......more

Goodreads review by Alexandra on November 20, 2025

3.5 stars. I am a fan of Colin Woodard. There is a lot of rehash in this one though. I did not learn much in this book.......more

Quotes

Praise for Nations Apart:

"Provocative. . . . [Woodard] raises an alarm, with clarion sharpness, about an authoritarian specter. . . . His book deserves attention."
—Wall Street Journal

"A powerful paradigm for understanding the defining hot button issues of contemporary America and the action we can take to bridge our cultural divisions and save the republic."
—The Next Big Idea Club

“A world-class intellectual. . . . [Colin Woodard’s] research can help Americans rediscover their common identity in spite of all the attempts to divide them.”
—Garry Kasparov

“A lucid exercise in political geography with tremendous—and disturbing—explanatory power.”
—Kirkus Reviews

"An in-depth, nuanced look at the regional differences that influence values and belief systems within large geographical swaths of the U.S. . . . [Woodard's] in-depth but accessible arguments bring in elements of history, religion, philosophy, economics, international comparisons, and predictions for the future, all fully supported by data. . . . Considerable food for thought."
—Booklist (STARRED review)

"Armed with this impressive battery of data, Woodard examines and breaks down the attitudes of each nation. . . . It was a pleasure to read the more philosophical chapters about the creation myths of the various 'nations.' . . . Woodard’s message is urgent and could hardly be more timely. I believe he is absolutely right."
—Portland Press Herald

"Sweeping. . . . Readers will find themselves nodding along. It’s a thought-provoking reflection on the deep roots of America’s divisions."
—Publishers Weekly

"Where American Nations was a map of our historical DNA, Nations Apart promises to be a diagnosis of our present — and maybe a warning for the future."
—Richard Stride, The Chronicle

"[Nations Apart] does an admirable job of providing empirical evidence on how the different regions of the country have developed, how they present today, and how they can be better united. . . . The book serves as a comprehensive history lesson, opening up avenues for further study and connecting with those who hail from any of the regions discussed."
—Library Journal

Praise for Union:

Named a Book of the Year by the Christian Science Monitor

"In Woodard’s hands, [history] leaps to life. He shows just how powerful a form popular nonfiction can be in the hands of a disciplined writer who won’t tolerate generality or abstraction. . . . The writing is relentlessly accessible. . . . This is that rare history that tells what influential thinkers failed to think, what famous writers left unwritten."
—Jill Leovy, The American Scholar

Praise for American Character:

Chautauqua Book Prize finalist • Winner of the Maine Literary Award for Non-fiction

"[Woodard] is a terrific writer, and his range is impressive."
—David Oshinsky, Washington Post

Praise for American Nations:

A Wall Street Journal bestseller • A New Republic Best Book of the Year • The Globalist Top Books of the Year • Winner of the Maine Literary Award for Non-fiction

“Fascinating . . . Engrossing . . . a smart read that feels particularly timely now, when so many would claim a mythically unified ‘founding Fathers’ as their political ancestors.”
—The Boston Globe

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