As the wealth gap widens, com­mu­ni­ties crum­ble, and Amer­i­cans work more for less, Adam Chan­dler rais­es the ques­tion: What hap­pens when per­spi­ra­tion isn’t enough? To answer it, he criss­cross­es the coun­try inter­view­ing may­ors, teach­ers, gen­er­als, pas­tors, con­struc­tion work­ers, and entre­pre­neurs, to reveal just how unten­able rely­ing on ​“per­spi­ra­tion” as a strat­e­gy has tru­ly become. He also delves into America’s past to reveal how our gov­ern­ment, edu­ca­tion sys­tem, and cul­ture at large have woven the idea of mer­i­toc­ra­cy deep into the fab­ric of Amer­i­can soci­ety and how some of history’s most famous so-called boot­strap­pers real­ly built their wealth. From George Wash­ing­ton to Seat­tle, Wash­ing­ton, Jay Gats­by to Bill Gates, 99% Per­spi­ra­tion unpacks the mis­guid­ed obses­sion with hard work that has come to define both the Amer­i­can dream and night­mare, offer­ing insight into how we got here and hope for where we may go.