Who Is Government?: The Untold Story of Public Service (2025) is a collection of essays edited by Michael Lewis, acclaimed financial journalist and bestselling author of The Big Short, Moneyball, and The Fifth Risk. Lewis, known for his ability to uncover compelling narratives within complex systems, builds on his previous exploration of federal agencies in The Fifth Risk (2018), expanding his investigation of government operations by collaborating with six other writers: Casey Cep, Dave Eggers, John Lanchester, Geraldine Brooks, Sarah Vowell, and W. Kamau Bell.

Published during a period of intense political polarization and debate about the government’s role in American life, this collection represents a significant contribution to public discourse by illuminating the often overlooked work of career civil servants. The book presents profiles and investigations into various federal agencies, challenging prevailing stereotypes about government workers while revealing the essential infrastructure that supports democracy in the US.

This study guide refers to the 2025 Riverhead Books e-book edition.

Summary

In Who Is Government?, Michael Lewis and six other accomplished writers reveal the world of federal civil service through compelling profiles of government employees and agencies. The project originated after Lewis witnessed the dismantling of the 2016 Trump transition team and the appointment of officials who lacked basic knowledge about the departments they would lead. Recognizing an opportunity to explore the government’s inner workings, Lewis investigated various federal agencies and published his findings in The Fifth Risk. This expanded collection brings together diverse voices to challenge prevailing stereotypes about bureaucrats while showcasing how dedicated civil servants form the essential infrastructure that sustains democracy in the US.

Each essay profiles different civil servants whose work significantly impacts the lives of US citizens yet remains largely invisible to the public. In “The Canary,” Lewis tells the story of Christopher Mark, a mining engineer whose statistical approach to mine safety led to the first year with zero roof fall fatalities in US coal mining history. Despite this achievement, Mark remained unknown outside his field, exemplifying how civil servants often solve critical problems without receiving recognition.

Casey Cep’s “The Sentinel” examines how Ronald Walters’s meticulous leadership of the National Cemetery Administration transformed the agency into the highest-rated organization in the American Customer Satisfaction Index. Cep illustrates how Walters standardized cemetery operations, developed innovative memorial programs, and created opportunities for unhoused veterans while maintaining the democratic principle that all veterans receive identical honors regardless of rank.

In “The Searchers,” Dave Eggers explores the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Jet Propulsion Laboratory, focusing on scientists who developed technology to find planets that might support life. Eggers emphasizes that this crucial work of exploring the universe’s origins would not happen without government funding, since private corporations see no immediate profit in such research. The essay highlights the humility of these scientists, who consistently emphasize teamwork over individual achievement.

John Lanchester’s “The Number” examines the Consumer Price Index, demonstrating how this seemingly abstract statistic directly influences countless aspects of life in the US. Lanchester positions government statistics as essential components of democratic governance while exploring how economic indicators can be politicized and misunderstood. The essay warns against abandoning the Enlightenment values embedded in statistical measurement, framing such rejection as part of a dangerous cultural shift threatening democratic governance.

Geraldine Brooks profiles Jarod Koopman in “The Cyber Sleuth,” revealing how the IRS Criminal Investigation division’s cybercrime team has achieved remarkable successes largely unknown to US citizens. Their work includes rescuing children from abuse, intercepting terrorist funding, and prosecuting financial crimes. Brooks contrasts these achievements with the negative public perception of the IRS, showing how budget cuts and political attacks have hampered important government functions.

In “The Equalizer,” Sarah Vowell examines the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) through Chief Innovation Officer Pamela Wright, whose rural Montana background informs her mission to make government records accessible to all US citizens regardless of geography. Vowell highlights innovations like the Citizen Archivist Program and History Hub that transform the relationship between the public and government records, fulfilling democratic ideals of government “by the people.”

W. Kamau Bell’s “The Rookie” follows his goddaughter Olivia Rynberg-Going, a young Black woman working as a paralegal in the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division. Through Olivia’s story, Bell explores how antitrust enforcement impacts US citizens. In addition, he discusses obstacles to government service careers, particularly student debt, arguing that effective government depends on attracting passionate young people.

Lewis concludes with “The Free-Living Bureaucrat,” interweaving the story of the Smith family’s battle against a rare brain-eating amoeba affecting their daughter, Alaina, with the story of Heather Stone, an employee of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), who created Cure ID, a platform for sharing treatments for rare diseases. Despite Stone’s dedicated efforts, Cure ID remained underutilized by the medical community. Alaina’s mother and grandmother found out about the life-saving treatment nitroxoline through desperate online searches, discovering research that hadn’t reached Alaina’s doctors through conventional medical channels. Stone helped facilitate access to the treatment. However, shortly after Alaina recovered, another child with the same condition died because her doctors learned about nitroxoline too late, underscoring the tragic consequences of this information gap despite well-intentioned government innovations.

Throughout these profiles, Who Is Government? reveals the human beings behind government institutions—dedicated professionals whose work often goes unrecognized despite its critical importance. The collection challenges prevailing stereotypes of inefficient bureaucrats, instead portraying civil servants as innovative problem-solvers whose expertise and commitment provide essential but largely invisible infrastructure supporting US society. By highlighting these stories, Lewis and his collaborators make a compelling case for valuing public service and the institutions that enable it, suggesting that the health of American democracy depends on understanding and appreciating the human dimension of government.