"From the New York Times bestselling author of West of Here, a novel that chronicles a hundred-and-seventy years of American nation-building from numerous points-of-view across place and time, and explores the Great American Experiment from its formative days to the present moment and asks whether or not our nation has made good on its promises"-- Set against such iconic backdrops as the California gold rush, the development of the transcontinental railroad, and a speeding train of modern-day strangers forced together by fate, the characters connect in the most intriguing and meaningful ways. As almost two centuries of American nation-building are viewed from numerous points of view across place and time, the novel asks on the most human, intimate scale whether it is truly possible to meet, and survive, the choices posed-- and forced-- by the age. -- adapted from jacket Provided by publisher.