For the first time, the definitive account of Americaâs most powerful, most secretive, and most controversial nonprofit, and how far it has strayed from its origins.
What The Reviewers Say
Patrick Blanchfield,
Bookforum
... [an] important new book.
Edwin Burgess,
Library Journal
... balanced.
Publishers Weekly
Journalist Smyth debuts with a balanced and accessible history of the National Rifle Association.
Kirkus
...a measured, scrupulously researched political history that shows how the NRA has evolved from an organization promoting rifle marksmanship to an unrelenting foe of all limits on guns. Smyth blends a great-man approach to history with an instinct for following money trails, telling the story of the NRA largely through its leaders and how their financial or other decisions shaped the group and the nation.