The Day America Told the Truth

by James Patterson, Peter Kim

The result of a national survey on private morals, this look at America's deepest secrets reveals shocking confessions by Americans about their views on sex, crime, punishment, rape, the death penalty,

Genres: Nonfiction, History

288 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1991

About the author

Official US Site
Official UK Site
JIMMY Patterson Books
ReadKiddoRead

James Patterson is the most popular storyteller of our time and the creator of such unforgettable characters and series as Alex Cross, the Women’s Murder Club, Jane Smith, and Maximum Ride. He has coauthored #1 bestselling novels with Bill Clinton, Dolly Parton, and Michael Crichton, as well as collaborated on #1 bestselling nonfiction, including The Idaho Four, Walk in My Combat Boots, and Filthy Rich. Patterson has told the story of his own life in the #1 bestselling autobiography James Patterson by James Patterson. He is the recipient of an Edgar Award, ten Emmy Awards, the Literarian Award from the National Book Foundation, and the National Humanities Medal.

Reviews

[Nate McAbee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unbelievably honest look at Americans and how much we could improve ourselves with a little guidance.

[Antho2 · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is a brutal look at the fallen nature of humanity. I actually didn’t finish it because it was so depressing.

[Ahsan Butt · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have translated this book from English into Urdu for Nigarshat Publishers, Lahore, Pakistan. The title of Urdu translation is Amreeka Gunahon Ki Daldal Mein امریکا گناہوں کی دَلدَل میں.

[The_Old_Brick · Rating 1 out of 5]

Stopped reading after 60 pages.

Starting with 5 stars...

-1 star Out-of-date. A book about American thoughts and feelings from 1991. Readers in 2024 want to know about American thoughts and feelings now.

-1 star Merely regurgitates the results of a survey. At best, it's a reference book.

-1 star As a reference book, it's poorly organized. Effort would be required to find a specific statistic. Maybe it's a narrative book.

-1 star As a narrative book, it's boring because examples from the lives of survey respondents have been stripped of descriptive details in the supposed interest of maintaining anonymity.

In fact, I have serious doubts about the legitimacy of the survey. One reviewer (https://ropercenter.cornell.edu/sites...) wrote that this book is "based on poorly documented and questionable data, and simplistic and bumbling analysis".

[Crystal Pippin · Rating 2 out of 5]

long

[Kimberly Duffle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I realize this book is about 30 years old, but the tragedy is in the statistics! And you know it is only getting worse. I fear for our children!