In Walker Percy's future America, the country is on the brink of disaster. With citizens violently polarized along racial, political, and social lines, and a fifteen-year war still raging abroad, America is crumbling quickly into ruin. The country's one remaining hope is Dr. Thomas More, whose "lapsometer" is capable of diagnosing the spiritual afflictions-anxiety, depression, alienation-driving everyone's destructive and disastrous behavior.
But such a potent machine has its pitfalls. As Dr. More soon learns, in the wrong hands, the powerful lapsometer could lead to open warfare, pushing America into anarchy at full-speed.

Review
"Immensely readable, vividly entertaining." -Los Angeles Times
"Brilliant and hilarious . . . some of the most fascinating characters you'll ever encounter." -The Dallas Morning News
"One of the major novels of our time." -Milwaukee Journal

"A great adventure...So outrageous and so real, one is left speechless." -- Chicago Sun-Times
"A comedy of love against a field of anarchy...Percy is easily one of the finest writers we have." --New York Times Book Review
"Immensely readable, vividly entertaining." --Los Angeles Times
"Brilliant and hilarious...some of the most fascinating characters you'll ever encounter." --Dallas Morning News
"One of the major novels of our time." --Milwaukee Journal