"I want to shed light on a past that is rarely recognized, a past in which the power of individuals and unarmed people is colossal, in which the scale of changes in the world and in the collective imagination in the last few decades is astonishing, in which the marvelous things that have happened can arm us to courageously penetrate the dark future."

By analyzing recent historical developments - from the Berlin Wall to the Supreme Court decisions on same-sex marriage - and contemporary movements - from the global protest against the war in Iraq to the Zapatista uprising in Mexico - Rebecca Solnit's thoughts on change in the 20th century compose a manifesto of optimism for the 21st century.