All That Is Solid Melts into Air — Afterword 2010

When I first imagined All That Is Solid, my vision had an enormous scope: a cosmopolitan horizon that could embrace not only my neighborhood but also the whole world, and help empower men and women everywhere. When the book came out, in 1982, its American publisher was uninterested, and took it out of circulation. However, it was picked up by Verso, and then translated into many languages. It evoked great excitement in Brazil and Latin America, as part of the democratic culture that was just emerging after a generation of “dirty wars.” American Penguin noted this, and brought it out in an edition still in print. The book also had adventures in China, and most recently in Iran. The global reach of my earliest fantasies has come true.