This tome is the first in a series of writings on the cultural history of the United States of America. The first concepts introduced are history and culture. The influence of the two is mutual: history creates but also influences culture. Here, as the title clearly shows, the English part of the nation's history is examined first. Everyone knows there was already a large continent with nations of tribal people who had different cultures. Centuries of visitation preceded anything like conquest. In the long run, the political policy of encouraging immigration combined with the need for room for burgeoning European populations and created the new America.

The book focuses on "folkways." These are multi-faceted constructs that people use every day. Each folkway has 24 parts. The book is arranged so that each one of these is pursued and explained at length. Each gives a great deal of information that shows what it is that the populace is dealing with whenever people handle or work with a "folkway." There are cultural behaviors which are then described as "ways." In a list taken directly from the Introduction, these are: 1) Speech ways; 2) Building ways; 3) Family ways; 4) Marriage ways; 5) Gender ways; 6) Sex ways; 7) Child-rearing ways; 8) Naming ways; 9) Age ways; 10) Death ways; 11) Religious ways; 12) Magic ways; 13) Learning ways; 14) Food ways; 15) Dress ways; 16) Sport ways; 17) Work ways; 18) Time ways; 19) Wealth ways; 20) Rank ways; 21) Social ways; 22) Order ways; 23) Power ways; 24) Freedom ways. These are further subdivided within the book. The summary covers the full range of topics that the book covers. However, each chapter of the summary attempts an overall sense of each chapter, and also goes into depth at some points. This is the best way to give readers the most accurate sense of what the book is like.

Readers take quite a journey during this book. Ultimately, it does an excellent job of showing how a large variety of factors play into what will come to pass. Each folkway is extensive, and people will feel that they have delved into a matter with great depth only to resurface with an improved understanding of how and why particular regions of the nation tend to be a certain way and how they themselves have been affected by this.