What do we think of when we think of the hamburger? A robust, succulent spheroid of fresh ground beef, the birthright of red-blooded American citizens? Or a Styrofoam-shrouded Big Mac, mass-produced to industrial specifications and served by wage slaves to an obese, brainwashed population? Is it cooking or commodity? An icon of freedom or the quintessence of conformity? This fast-paced and entertaining book unfolds the immense significance of the hamburger as an American icon. Josh Ozersky shows how the history of the burger is entwined with American business and culture and how the burger's story is in many ways the story of the country that invented (and reinvented) it. How this all happened, and why, is a remarkable story, told here with insight, humor, and gusto.