{"product_id":"the-one-and-the-ninety-nine-forging-identity-in-the-age-of-social-contagion","title":"The One and the Ninety-Nine: Forging Identity in the Age of Social Contagion","description":"\n\u003ctable align=\"center\" border=\"0\" cellpadding=\"2\" cellspacing=\"0\" width=\"100%\"\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd class=\"productDetailSmallElements\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBiographical Note\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eLuke Burgis\u003c\/b\u003e is the director of The Cluny Institute and a professor at The Catholic University of America, where he studies the invisible forces that shape human behavior. He is the author of \n\u003ci\u003eWanting: The Power of Mimetic Desire in Everyday Life\u003c\/i\u003e. He lives in Washington, D.C., and Michigan with his wife, Claire, and their children.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"Me or we? Both. I've learned so much from Luke Burgis and his new book \u003ci\u003eThe One and the Ninety-Nine\u003c\/i\u003e. The solid self, he says, is knowing who you are as an individual while also being connected to and shaped by your community. Amen, amen!\u003cbr\u003e--\u003cb\u003eAngela Duckworth, author of\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003e Grit\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Fascinating. A very well written and conceived book.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e--\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eSebastian Junger, author of\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003e Tribe\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Luke Burgis shares a story of tragedy and loss, and how it led to a life of compassion and hope. \u003ci\u003eThe One and the Ninety-Nine\u003c\/i\u003e is a guide to living with virtue in the hardest circumstances, and finding deep joy.\"\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e--Arthur C. Brooks, Harvard professor and #1 \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Luke Burgis takes his title from the Lord's parable of the shepherd who leaves the ninety-nine to seek the one lost sheep--and builds from this an urgent case for why, in an age that dissolves us into the crowd or subsumes us into the cruelty of the mob, an individual, unrepeatable person matters infinitely. This is a humane, learned and courageous retrieval of an essential personalism that is necessary reading for our technological age.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e--Bishop Robert Barron\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Burgis shows us how to resist the siren call of false identification, which targets us every moment of every day from all our devices. Joining his own experience to the testimony of the ages, he reveals how we discover our true selves in a personal response to the call of the good and the beautiful.\"\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e--Michael Clune, author of \u003ci\u003ePan \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\"Social contagion is the most important phenomenon of our time. \n\u003ci\u003eThe One and the Ninety-Nine\u003c\/i\u003e is the place to go to learn about it.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e -- \n\u003cb\u003eTyler Cowen, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Complacent Class \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \n\u003ci\u003e\"\u003c\/i\u003eA book about the problem beneath all our other problems: how to become a person capable of truth, courage, and belonging in a culture that dissolves all three. Burgis manages to be both humane and unflinchingly honest, which is not only rare, but invaluable.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e -- \n\u003cb\u003eKatherine Dee, internet culture reporter \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"One of this year's most important books. [Burgis is] training people to shun conformity and resist totalitarianism. Absolute must-read!\" \n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e --Rod Dreher, author of \u003ci\u003eLiving in Wonder\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\" \n\u003ci\u003eThe One and the Ninety-Nine \u003c\/i\u003eis nothing short of courageous. Luke Burgis has risked much in his boldness of form and content, in making it personal. In a time when the stakes could hardly be higher, this book could lead you to great rewards. Take it personally.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e--Andrew McLuhan, founder of the McLuhan Institute\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \"The strength of the team is the self. The strength of the self is the team. Burgis shows you how to be authentically yourself \n\u003ci\u003eand\u003c\/i\u003e consider the impact you're having on others so you can do your best work and build your strongest relationships.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e--Kim Scott, author \u003ci\u003eRadical Candor\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eRadical Respect\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\" \n\u003ci\u003eThe One and the Ninety-Nine\u003c\/i\u003e is an ambitious, illuminating book, wherein its insights about perception, rites of passage, and the personal character of life, are mirrored in its form--through 'probes, ' interconnected 'thresholds, ' and more. Most books in this genre remain at the level of head-knowledge, but Burgis achieves something more ambitious--a book of ideas that operates at the level of perception, and the heart.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e--Jordan Castro, novelist\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Developing a healthy truth-seeking identity in an age of both isolation and digital saturation based on tribal identities is rapidly becoming a core issue for young people. \n\u003ci\u003eThe One and the Ninety-Nine\u003c\/i\u003e is a guide for both individuals and parents on how to foster one through healthy relationships.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e -- \n\u003cb\u003eMichael Strong, founder of the Socratic Experience, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Habit of Thought\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eBe the Solution \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \"A warm, wonderful account of how to develop a healthy self--based in community--for the age of digital distraction. It combines personal reflections from key transitions with longer-term principles on how to live a satisfying life.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e -- \n\u003cb\u003eMagatte Wade, entrepreneur and author of \u003ci\u003eThe Heart of the Cheetah\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\" \n\u003ci\u003eThe One and the Ninety-Nine\u003c\/i\u003e offers a compelling exploration of how to develop a healthier sense of self in an age of social contagion and fragmented identities. A timely and much-needed book.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e-- \n\u003cb\u003eAnne-Laure Le Cunff, neuroscientist and author of \u003ci\u003eTiny Experiments\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\"I never hesitate to recommend a Luke Burgis book! His wisdom is hard won, and \n\u003ci\u003eThe One and the Ninety-Nine \u003c\/i\u003eimmerses readers in the task of unpacking the complex and nuanced truths that require that we live better than we did before we read it. Because of Burgis' book, communal interdependence may return to public discourse, and the high calling of a life of virtue once again appears reachable.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e--\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eJessica Hooten Wilson, Fletcher Jones Chair of Great Books at Pepperdine University, and author of \u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe Scandal of Holiness\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\"Highly readable and entertaining... This book should be read by anyone interested in understanding one of the most fundamental dilemmas of the human predicament: how to balance individualism against sociability in our increasingly fragmented and anonymous mass societies.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e-- \n\u003cb\u003eJoseph P. Forgas, DPhil, DSc. (Oxford), Scientia Professor, University of New south Wales \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\" \n\u003ci\u003eThe One and the Ninety-Nine\u003c\/i\u003e pushes us to think past the idea of belonging as an end in itself.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e--\u003ci\u003eMere Orthodoxy\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\"Luke Burgis' first book made big waves. This one will create a tsunami.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e--Cynthia L. Haven, author of \u003ci\u003eEvolution of Desire\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\"Burgis has a knack for making complicated concepts accessible to a general audience and for proposing solutions that can be applied daily to one's life. But above all, the book speaks to real problems plaguing our times.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e--\u003ci\u003eFirst Things\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\"An absorbing book.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003e--The Wall Street Journal\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher Marketing\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eA Next Big Idea Club Must-Read and an \u003ci\u003eOur Culture \u003c\/i\u003eMost Anticipated Book of Summer 2026 \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eIt's not hard to find your tribe. The real challenge today is not losing yourself within one.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003eWe are surrounded by tribes: political, professional, online, ideological. Each offer belonging at a price. Join, and you risk dissolving into a ready-made identity. Refuse, and you risk drifting into isolation. Either way, the modern person is pulled toward the same end: forming a fragmented self that is easier to manage, easier to sell to, and easier to recruit. \n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eIn \n\u003ci\u003eThe One and the Ninety-Nine\u003c\/i\u003e, bestselling author Luke Burgis argues that the great crisis of our time is not simply polarization or loneliness, but a crisis of formation: it's difficult to form an identity that is solid enough to withstand the pressure of the crowd, and modern institutions don't reward the effort. Drawing from psychology, philosophy, and personal experience, Burgis shows how groups shape our desires, how \"social contagion\" spreads through families and institutions, and why the hunger to belong can turn ordinary people into instruments of movements they barely understand. \n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThis book is about the missing skill that makes real community possible: learning how to remain oneself while staying connected to others. Burgis offers a practical map for recognizing false belonging, escaping coercive dynamics, and passing through the rites of passage that produce people with integrity and courage. \n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003ci\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe One and the Ninety-Nine\u003c\/i\u003e is a timely and inspiring wake-up call, an invitation to reject counterfeit community and develop depth of personality--to become someone who can stand alone--so that we can finally stand together. \n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eContributor Bio:\u003c\/strong\u003eBurgis, Luke\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eLuke Burgis\u003c\/b\u003e is the director of The Cluny Institute and a professor at The Catholic University of America, where he studies the invisible forces that shape human behavior. He is the author of \n\u003ci\u003eWanting: The Power of Mimetic Desire in Everyday Life\u003c\/i\u003e. He lives in Washington, D.C., and Michigan with his wife, Claire, and their children.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003c\/table\u003e\n","brand":"St. Martin's Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51496144634134,"sku":"9781250373038","price":36.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0857\/9910\/8886\/files\/9781250373038.jpg?v=1783053924","url":"https:\/\/lusper.myshopify.com\/products\/the-one-and-the-ninety-nine-forging-identity-in-the-age-of-social-contagion","provider":"Lusperbooks","version":"1.0","type":"link"}