​I recently heard the author of this book, “If You Can Keep It” interviewed on a Christian network. What the author had to say grabbed my attention forcefully, and I was able to find the book at a local bookstore. The book was even more valuable than I had hoped, and I desperately wish every American would read it. It is one of the most impactful books I have ever read.

The title of the book is taken from the words of Benjamin Franklin. On the day the founders emerged from the building where they had designed our Constitution in 1787, a woman asked Benjamin Franklin, “Well, doctor, what have we got? A republic or a monarchy?” His reply was, “A republic, madam—if you can keep it.” The subtitle of the book is The Forgotten Promise of American Liberty.

The author tells us that the book “is not meant to be discouraging” but to help us “consider what we have forgotten and what we must do.” It provides answers to some very important questions, such as:

1. Can America’s democracy automatically continue to carry on without any effort to
pass on the flame of freedom?
2. What has happened to America’s heroes, and why is it important?
3. What is at the very core of American “exceptionalism”?

Eric Metaxas is a gifted writer. He is a master at word pictures. Here’s a case in point from the fourth chapter: “ . . . we are already living on borrowed time, like a cut flower that still appears fresh and beautiful but that, because it’s been separated from the source of its life, has begun to die. America, that great and fragile experiment in liberty has become cut off from its roots. We need to see this and we need to do all we can to remedy it, quickly.” I must admit that at times the author stretched my vocabulary. I kept a dictionary close at hand. But the book is very readable. It is artfully written with great heart. I believe that if you have children, grandchildren, or nieces and nephews, you will feel compelled to teach them about the greatness of our country and the importance of their responsibilities as partakers of this freedom, after reading this book.