The Year That Broke America: An Immigration Crisis, a Terrorist Conspiracy, the Summer of Survivor, a Ridiculous Fake Billionaire, a Fight for Florida, and the 537 Votes That Changed Everything

Journalist Rice (The Teeth May Smile but the Heart Does Not Forget) offers a fast-paced and jam-packed political and cultural history of America in the year 2000. Pointing out that Florida was where some of the 9/11 hijackers learned to fly, where Donald Trump first planned to run for president, and where the controversy over Elián Gonzalez’s immigration case played out, Rice characterizes the state as the “crucible” from which 21st-century America emerged. He vividly describes the family dynamics and hard-nosed tactics behind George W. Bush’s political ascendancy, the impact Al Gore’s candidacy had on his relationship with Bill Clinton, and the Supreme Court’s 5–4 decision to end the Florida recount and award the presidency to Bush. Along the way, Rice offers new details about such well-known events as the “Brooks Brothers Riot” and weaves in the unlikely story of a Black Wall Street executive involved in a money-laundering and arms-trafficking scheme with links to Osama bin Laden. Impressively sourced and energetically written, this is a rollicking account of how the country got to where it is today. (Feb.)