NPR

'The Heartland' Aims To Debunk Myths About The Midwest

Though leaving no answer to the region's political future, author Kristin L. Hoganson writes a deeply researched book that will remain useful and readable long after this election cycle.
<em>The Heartland: An American History</em>, by Kristin L. Hoganson

History books are often saddled — or blessed, depending on one's perspective — by the context in which they are written.

Kristin L. Hoganson's her new book, The Heartland: An American History, is a product of its time — seeking to answer questions about the Midwest that have arisen since the election of Donald Trump.

What do people living there want? Who are they? As commentators played the difference between so-called "coastal elites" and everyone else, interest in understanding whether the Midwest really is the isolationist, change-averse region it was made

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