American Gun

The True Story of the AR-15 Rifle

By: Cameron McWhirter, Zusha Elinson

Narrated by: Roger Wayne

Long-listed, New Yorker Best Books of the Year, 2023

Long-listed, Kirkus Reviews Best Books of the Year, 2023

L.A. Times Book Prize—Finalist, 2023

Long-listed, Washington Post Best Books of the Year, 2023

American Gun: The True Story of the AR-15 presents the epic history of America’s most controversial weapon.

In the 1950s, an obsessive firearms designer named Eugene Stoner invented the AR-15 rifle in a California garage. High-minded and patriotic, Stoner sought to devise a lightweight, easy-to-use weapon that could replace the M1s touted by soldiers in World War II. What he did create was a lethal handheld icon of the American century.

In American Gun, the veteran Wall Street Journal reporters Cameron McWhirter and Zusha Elinson track the AR-15 from inception to ubiquity. How did the same gun represent the essence of freedom to millions of Americans and the essence of evil to millions more? To answer this question, McWhirter and Elinson follow Stoner—the American Kalashnikov—as he struggled mightily to win support for his invention, which under the name M16 would become standard equipment in Vietnam. Shunned by gun owners at first, the rifle’s popularity would take off thanks to a renegade band of small-time gun makers. And in the 2000s, it would become the weapon of choice for mass shooters, prompting widespread calls for proscription even as the gun industry embraced it as a financial savior. Writing with fairness and compassion, McWhirter and Elinson explore America’s gun culture, revealing the deep appeal of the AR-15, the awful havoc it wreaks, and the politics of reducing its toll. The result is a moral history of contemporary America’s love affair with technology, freedom, and weaponry.

A Macmillan Audio production from Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

©2023 Cameron McWhirter, Zusha Elinson (P)2023 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

"[A] superb history . . . [American Gun] is a meticulously researched and impressively informed book . . . A riveting exploration of the cost of the nation’s fascination with an iconic weapon."—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

"A captivating tale of unintended consequences . . . The authors put a human face on a politically charged story. The result is a fascinating genealogy of a weapon that has become the flash point of the contemporary gun control debate."—Publishers Weekly

"American Gun is an engrossing read. It is both a revealing biography and a thorough autopsy of a historical figure that resides in millions of American homes: the AR-15 rifle. Created in a garage but worshipped as if born in a manger, the AR-15 has become destructive weapon of choice in many mass killings and a source of heartbreak that gnaws at the souls of millions of Americans every day. Through exhaustive research and superb writing, Cameron McWhirter and Zusha Elinson haven’t missed an important moment in the life of this weapon—and they answer the question: what would the inventor of the AR-15 think about the monstrous ways it is being used today?"—Hank Klibanoff, Pulitzer Prize-winning co-author of The Race Beat

Good but over focused on shootings

Had a really good history in the first part but the second part was all just a list of mass shootings. The content seemed factual and fair but it was more a call to gun control then a historical account of the AR15

This books comes off anti AR15

The first half of the book was great. It is a good history of Stoner and the development of the rifle. Then about halfway through the book turns into a history of the government trying to ban it and murderers killing people with it all while the authors seem to try and convince the reader the rifle should be banned.

Utterly Fascinating

goodness there is so much here. they're I had no idea about the story behind the AR-15 and it is told so well. The performance of this audiobook is really really one of the best that I have ever ever heard captured all the emotions of of the complex nature of this book. I do think it did a pretty good job of covering both sides of the argument but never straying from the fact that the AR-15 was never meant to be a civilian gun I think this is one of the best books I've read / listened to in a very long time and I highly recommend it

Don't Look Away

Certified Lib here. After this book, I find myself not seeking to ban AR-15s. I do, however, find myself siding with Colt executive Gerry Dinkel who thinks there should be way more scrutiny in who owns one, similar to how full autos are regulated. This book doesn't pretend to have the answer to mass shootings. As Americans we make our own decisions anyway. I just hope we can all come together and start making some good and much needed choices. The way forward is through. Don't look away.

Good but......

The actual history portion of the book is good but it's a lot of anti-gun propaganda disguised as history in fact the last 6-7 hours is more like the history of mass shootings.

Historically accurate but politically motivated.

The first half of the book was, in fact, an accurate story of the AR15's creation and its inventors life. There were some left-leaning comments on the power and effectiveness of the rifle but they were few and far between. The second half of the book was spent detailing the misuse of the weapon by criminals and terrorists and the horrific consequences of being shot. It details the tragic story of one of the San Bernardino victims. All true and painful to listen to but irrelevant to the design and popularity of the rifle. These injuries were not rifle specific but used as a political tool to bring in to question the morality of one popular firearm that makes up a minuscule percentage of the shootings and not the exclusive weapon of mass shooters as they would seem to make the case for.

Not a Hiistory

The book masquerades as a history of the weapon described. It is not. It a polemic against weapons and weapon. After the 3rd or 4th lurid description of a shooting I quit reading the book.

Good Beginning that Devolves into Leftist Propaganda

The beginning of this book is pretty good, as it details the life of Eugene Stoner and the creation of his rifle. But, it is clear where the authors intentions lie even early on. Less than halfway through, the book devolves into disingenuous democrat talking points. The writers are not objective in the slightest, as the book just becomes riddled with pathos and appeals to emotion. Even if you wanted to treat it as a pro gun control book (which it absolutely is,) the writers are incompetent about actually engaging in the debate or making a compelling case at all. There is no mention of the comprehensive work done by John Lott in "More Guns, Less Crime." The authors intentionally circumvent actual statistics on shootings, ignoring entirely where almost all of the mass shooting take place (gun free zones.)

Murder is already illegal. Criminals don't follow laws, nor are they hindered by them. Furthermore; no one is arguing that AR-15s aren't made to kill. They aren't hunting rifle. They are for fighting tyranny and to act as a deterrent against it. Speaking of deterrence, the authors completely ignore that as a factor in where shootings happen vs. where they don't. They try claiming that "the good guy with a gun only seems to happen in about 5% of the mass shootings." Yeah? That's because the overwhelming majority happen in gun free zones.

The authors seem to think you can legislate behavior. Also, the book speaks of Diane Feinstein, Joe Biden, Beto O'Rourke, etc. with such reverence. They also mention two different inane Stephen King quotes throughout the book. It is cringe-worthy. I don't know who this book is for. Liberals are not likely to be interested in the history of the AR-15. And if you are even a centrist, this book is likely to make you roll your eyes all throughout majority of it. The authors are only concerned with spreading leftist tribe and are either woefully uninformed or intentionally duplicitous about Kyle Rittenhouse (totally ignoring that most people rioting that night had guns; presenting Rittenhouse as a murderer and Rosenbaum and Huber as heroes,) the McCloskeys (ignoring that a mob had torn down the gate to their community,), January 6th (pretending it was an armed insurrection.) The Governor Whitmer "Kidnapping Plot" (pretending as if it was a right wing extremist group and not a federal agent honeypot/entrapment.)

The book ends with the authors pondering about what Eugene Stoner would think of the public owning his "military assault rifle." 1.) Irrelevant. 2.) He'd be stoked. More money for him.
The idea that it is only a "military rifle" is a lie. How well did that work out for the citizens of the Soviet Union, when they weren't allowed to own AK-47s? Or any of the other disarmed then killed millions of people in the 20th century.
There are 20 million ARs in the country. Your chances of getting killed by an AR15 are literally one in a million. Handguns are used in 80% of mass shootings. I could go on and on about how wrong they are; but, you get it.

If you are a Democrat and somehow reading this far into my review; go nuts! Enjoy the book. The unlettered arguments presented will probably seem really profound to you. If you are right wing, good luck. This book is an obnoxious and incompetent argument for gun control masquerading as a history book.

it's more of a history of US shootings

The first half is good but it seems to focus more on shootings and public opinion than on the history of the rifle itself. The author seems biased and should have stuck to facts and the history, it's the title!!!

It first focuses on the history, then devolves

It first focuses on the history, then devolves into mass shooting incidents. Not a straight historical accounting. Author’s reporting on mass shooting incidents is unreliable at best.