It has been 30 years since writer and social theorist Joel Garreau wrote “The Nine Nations of North America”, which portrayed the U.S., Canada and Mexico as really being nine distinct national regions based on shared culture, politics and geography. Now journalist Colin Woodard revisits the idea and has decided that it’s actually eleven nations, not nine in his recent book American Nations: A History of the Eleven Rival Regional Cultures of North America. His map’s a little less attached to the existing political boundaries than Garreau’s was — just looking at the book cover, I’d say the territory Woodard calls “The Midland” looks like it was gerrymandered by a Republican redistricting committee. I heard about it via this brief review at The Daily Beast, which is generally favorable (if a little light). Sam Smith of Progressive Review offered a more substantial review when the book was released in September.
