Janet Reitman — The Inheritance: An American Tragedy in Five Acts - With Annie Karni — at Conn Ave

Janet Reitman discusses *The Inheritance: An American Tragedy in Five Acts*, her reported account of nine Americans whose lives unfold across three decades of political and social upheaval. The book follows people connected to the post-9/11 era, including a former Navy pilot drawn to Afghanistan, his son’s descent into extremism, an FBI agent from a family of African freedom fighters, a Marine who becomes a white nationalist, and an attorney defending a Palestinian engineer accused of supporting Hamas.

Moving between Boston suburbs, Dallas immigrant communities, Iraq, and online spaces that foster hatred, the narrative examines the war on terror, American disillusionment, and the psychological damage left by a country increasingly shaped by fear. Reitman will discuss the book with Annie Karni.

Reitman is an award-winning journalist and contributing writer for *The New York Times Magazine*. She previously worked as a contributing editor at *Rolling Stone*, was twice a finalist for the National Magazine Award, and wrote the national bestseller *Inside Scientology: The Story of America’s Most Secretive Religion*. Karni is a congressional correspondent and former White House correspondent for *The New York Times*, as well as co-author of the bestseller *Mad House*.

When: Tuesday, October 27, 2026

Showtime: 7:00pm

Venue: Politics and Prose at 5015 Connecticut Avenue NW, 5015 Connecticut Ave NW, Washington, DC 20008

Conversation: Janet Reitman with Annie Karni

Tickets: Free

Seating: First come, first served

Accessibility: To request accommodations or ask about accessibility, email events@politics-prose.com, ideally at least one week before the event. The venue will try to accommodate requests made up to the event time.

Related book: *The Inheritance: An American Tragedy in Five Acts* by Janet Reitman is available in hardcover for $32.00. It was published October 6, 2026, and has ISBN 9781984854728.