Description: Americans' long and restless search for identity through family trees illuminates the story of America itself, according to François Weil, as preoccupation with social standing, racial purity, and national belonging gave way to an embrace of diversity in one's forebears, pursued through Ancestry.com and advances in DNA testing.
Brief description: François Weil is the Chancellor of the Universities of Paris. He is professor of history and a former president of the École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales.
Review Quotes: This elegant social and cultural history of genealogy in America is marked by meticulous research and astute comparisons with Europe as American practices gradually diverged. The central theme of democratization flowing, ebbing, and then flowing once again in the twentieth century is brilliantly realized.--Michael Kammen, past president of the Organization of American Historians