What to read to understand why Americans both love and loathe immigrants

Plenty of countries are home to lots of immigrants. But none extols its immigrant history like America, where it is drummed into pupils and inscribed on the Statue of Liberty. Yet the rhapsodies belie Americans’ own ambivalence towards the issue. Nearly six in ten are dissatisfied with the level of immigration; most people want less of it. Roger Daniels, a historian, wrote of a “dualistic attitude” towards immigration—Americans celebrate their immigrant past while rejecting much of the immigrant present. Foreigners have been welcomed as refugees or sources of labour, but also demonised and excluded. For immigrants themselves, arrival in America can be liberating or traumatic. Some of these books shed light on the chequered history while others elucidate the immigrant experience.