Malcolm Gladwell returns with a brilliant new work: an incisive investigation into gun violence, America's deadliest and most polarizing crisis.

Why, when it comes to lethal violence, is America so different from the rest of the globe? The United States is wealthier, better educated, more technologically sophisticated, more religious than almost any of its peers in the developed world-all of which would suggest that it should also have the lowest levels of violence. Yet the opposite is true.

In this bold new book, Malcolm Gladwell outlines the paradox, then walks the reader through a series of stories drawn from every corner of American life and culture from emergency rooms to Hollywood westerns to big-city police departments to Supreme Court oral arguments-looking for answers.

Praise for Malcolm Gladwell:

'Gladwell is a global phenomenon... he has a genius for making everything he writes seem like an impossible adventure' Observer

'He is the best kind of writer - the kind who makes you feel like you're a genius, rather than he's a genius' The Times

'The most confident storyteller in non-fiction... He always knows exactly where he is going and he takes you with him in pleasure and comfort' New Statesman

'Gladwell is a rock star of non-fiction' The Times

'Gladwell is not only a brilliant storyteller; he can see what those stories tell us, the lessons they contain' Guardian

'A great storyteller, with a contagious sense of curiosity' The Economist

'Gladwell makes the world seem fresh and exciting again' Evening Standard

'One of the most successful non-fiction authors of his generation' Financial Times