Made in America is part linguistic and etymological study of American English, part people’s history of the United States, part trivia compendium, and entirely fully of Bryson’s dry wit and ex-pat sensibilities. Approximately the first half of the chapters go chronologically, taking a myth-busting look at American history from the first colonists through the industrial revolution, and documenting when (and occasionally how) various Americanisms entered the lexicon. The second half of the book is broken up by topic: eating, shopping, cars, planes, politics, movies, sports, etc., and investigates what each topic has contributed to our linguistic and cultural history.