A Fictional History of the United States (with Huge Chunks Missing)

"This is a 'people's history' with tongue in cheek, delightfully funny, imaginative, but with a subtle undertone of seriousness. I enjoyed it immensely." --HOWARD ZINN, author of A People's History of the United States Original stories & artwork by: Daniel Alarcon, Amy Bloom, Kate Bornstein, Alexander Chee, T Cooper, Keith Knight, Ron Kovic, Paul La Farge, Felicia Luna Lemus, Adam Mansbach, Valerie Miner, Tommy O'Malley, Neal Pollack, David Rees, Sarah Schulman, Darin Strauss, and Benjamin Weissman. History is distorted the moment it's recorded--and in these politically dishonest times, challenging the stories we're told is more important than ever. In this groundbreaking anthology of original fiction, a diverse group of America's best writers takes on the task of creating counter-narratives to mainstream American history. Here are some of the moments and the people left out of the textbooks. Here is what else happened--on the margins of American life, and in between the lines of our history books. A Fictional History of the United States with Huge Chunks Missing brings together an eclectic array of celebrated authors and cartoonists to create a patchwork, anecdotal history of this complicated country. From the Chinese discovery of America in 1426 to the new McCarthyism of a post-9-11 world, this collection recasts everything from the moon landing to the Lindbergh kidnapping, westward expansion to the sexual proclivities of Civil War officers. Riveting, inventive, and politically vital, this anthology picks up--and yanks on--America's supposed commitment to seeking the truth . . . even if that truth is revealed in fiction. T Cooper is the author of the novels Lipshitz Six, or Two Angry Blondes (Dutton) and Some of the Parts (Akashic). T lives in New York City. For more information visit www.t-cooper.com. Adam Mansbach is the author of the novels Angry Black White Boy (Crown), Shackling Water (Doubleday), and the forthcoming The End of the Jews (Spiegel & Grau/Doubleday). He lives in Berkeley, California. For more information visit www.adammansbach.com.

As political dishonesty infects the ongoing process of history's creation, a diverse group of America's best fiction writers takes on the challenge of creating counter-narratives.Contributors include: Darin Strauss, Daniel Alarcon, Amy Bloom, Kate Bornstein, Alex Chee, T Cooper, Ron Kovic, Paul La Farge, David Rees, Keith Knight, Felicia Luna Lemus, Adam Mansbach, Valerie Miner, Tommy O'Malley, Neal Pollack, Scott Poulson-Bryant, Sarah Schulman, and Benjamin Weissman.T Cooper's debut novel Some of the Parts (Akashic, 2002), was a Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writers selection and a Quality Paperback Book Club pick. Her second novel, Lipshitz Six, or Two Angry Blondes, is forthcoming from Penguin/Plume. T lives in New York City.Adam Mansbach is the author of the novels Angry Black White Boy (Crown, 2005) and Shackling Water (Doubleday). He lives in Berkeley, California.