Exploring Atlas Shrugged: Ayn Rand’s Magnum Opus is a tribute, like many other books, to the greatness of Rand’s literary and philosophical achievement. It is an impressive identification and elaboration of the intellectual integration that gives Atlas Shrugged its protean power to move and persuade.

The Savvy Street

Exploring Atlas Shrugged is a profoundly influential book, one of the most influential of the post-World War II era, and it deserves a prominent spot on college syllabi ranging from freshman to graduate seminars. It is a book filled with ideas that everyone should spend a lot of time considering, and Edward Younkins’ Exploring Atlas Shrugged: Ayn Rand’s Magnum Opus will make that pondering easier and more fruitful.

American Institute for Economic Research

Ed Younkins is perhaps the most thorough and insightful commentator on the work of Ayn Rand. In this book he focuses his attention on Rand's literary magnum opus. Whether one is new to the novel or thoroughly familiar with it, one will find Younkins's discussions helpful. The breakdown of the novel into thematic headings is particularly helpful for understanding and analyzing this great literary work. I expect that Younkins's book will immediately become the standard reference source for readers of Atlas Shrugged.

Douglas Den Uyl, Vice President of Educational Programs, Liberty Fund

Ed Younkins provides us with a splendid survey and wonderfully accessible re-reading of Atlas Shrugged—an appreciation of its value as both literature and philosophy. Younkins traces the provocative implications of the book for our understanding of contemporary political economy and the nature of genuinely radical social change. Superb!

Chris Matthew Sciabarra, author of Ayn Rand: The Russian Radical

Ed Younkins has provided us with a marvelous work that examines the economic, literary, and philosophical dimensions of Ayn Rand’s magnum opus. This work will be valuable to those unacquainted with Rand’s thought, because of its clarity and thoroughness, and likewise to those familiar with her thought, because of its attention to various nuances. Most importantly, Younkins captures the moral power of Rand’s vision and its potential for creating social change. He has mastered his subject matter superbly.

Douglas B. Rasmussen, St. Johns University

The most important literary/philosophic task of our time is to bring Ayn Rand’s revolutionary writings to the attention of professional intellectuals. Kudos to Ed Younkins for this succinct and incisive volume on Atlas Shrugged that does exactly that.

Andrew Bernstein, author of Heroes, Legends, Champions: Why Heroism Matters