Deborah Brandt has dedicated her career to the state of reading and writing in the United States, and her research on literacy and learning is well known and widely studied. This book, sponsored by the Grawemeyer Foundation, showcases her biggest ideas and contributions to the field, and includes a new introduction by Dr. Brandt as well as a previously unpublished piece on writing.

Deborah Brandt, PhD(Madison, WI), is professor of English at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her book Literacy in American Lives (978-0-521-78315-6) won the 2002 Mina P. Shaughnessy Prize from the Modern Language Association, and she was the 2003 recipient of the Grawemeyer Award in education.