From the author of \'The Underground Railroad\', Winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award, and Longlisted for the 2017 Man Booker Prize. \'John Henry Days\' is a novel of extraordinary scope and mythic power. It established Colson Whitehead as a pre-eminent American writer of our time. Building the railways that made America, John Henry died with a hammer in his hand moments after competing against a steam drill in a battle of endurance. The story of his death made him a legend. Over a century later, J. Sutter, a freelance journalist and accomplished expense account abuser, is sent to West Virginia to cover the launch of a new postage stamp at the first \'John Henry Days\' festival. John Henry Days is a riveting portrait of America. Through a patchwork of interweaving histories Colson Whitehead triumphantly reveals how a nation creates its present through the stories it tells of its past.