"Although Puritanism is conflated with modern religious fundamentalism and its disregard for any learning that doesn't come from the Bible, Vowell argues passionately that Puritans were as enamored of wisdom and knowledge as religious virtue. Focusing on the Puritans who settled in 1630 in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, Vowell laments the image of Puritans as 'boring killjoys' when in fact they were 'fascinating killjoys' who, aside from their belief that Catholics were going to hell, were much more open to new ideas than we've been led to think. Drawing on letters, essays, and sermons, Vowell offers a penetrating look at the tensions between John Winthrop, John Cotton, Roger Williams, Anne Hutchinson, and others as they argued about the role of religion in government and everyday life. They saw themselves as God's chosen people, a credo that set the tone for American history and notions of manifest destiny that have led to all manner of imposition on other lands and cultures. But they also vehemently debated separation of church and state and founded Harvard, even as they pondered the destiny of what Winthrop referred to as the 'shining city on the hill.' A book dense with detail, insight, and humor."—Booklist (starred review)