The twentieth century has witnessed periodic revivals comparable to the awakenings of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. And yet, many of the places and players of these reawakenings have been overlooked or neglected by the chroniclers of North American church history. A Survey of 20th-Century Revival Movements in North America attempts to set the record straight. It offers a concise and useful survey of the major currents of revival that have swept over this continent since the turn of the century. As the final decade of this century approaches it is appropriate that historian Richard Riss chart the course of twentieth-century revival on this continent and record the people, places, and events that have shaped the modern American church.

Names like William J. Seymour or Maria B. Woodworth-Etter; places like Azusa Street or North Battleford, Saskatchewan; and events like the forest Home Briefing Conference or the Latter Rain Revival might not be as familiar as Billy Graham, Oral Roberts, or the Jesus movement, but each has played a significant role in keeping the streams of revival flowing. The impact of these often lesser-known figures and events is tremendous.