On the strength of his previous books and columns, Newsweek contributing editor Ellis Cose has already staked a reputation as one of America's premier thinkers and boldest writers. Now, with THE ENVY OF THE WORLD, Cose demonstrates that he is also an author of extraordinary empathy and pragmatism, delivering the most lucid, personal and acclaimed book of his career. THE ENVY OF THE WORLD details the particular ways black men come to internalise the disdain and fear directed at them by society as a whole. Even as he frankly contends with such dire issues as drug abuse, incarceration, criminal activity, misogyny and chronic economic inequality, Cose also considers the significance of the progress that has been made, particularly in recent decades. Featuring the comments and experiences of men who represent the vast spectrum of black experience, from the first black man to head a Fortune 500 company and the first black grandmaster of chess, to unknown drug dealers and jailed youths, this book challenges us in its careful, crystalline prose to rethink who we are and what we've become as a society.