I came out in the late Clinton or early Bush years, derived from travels and interviews at various places all over the country, and it looked at American culture, especially political culture, from a foreigner’s POV. (One thing I remember was his coverage of the annual Socialist Scholars Conference in NYC and noting how disconnected from reality all the topics seemed to be and how in America, unlike in most countries, academic socialists are like generals with no foot soldiers.)
It came out . . .
Googling a bit … There’s a film based on the book “Heaven on Earth: The Rise and Fall of Socialism” by Canadian professor Leo Panitch. 'Zat him?
No, definitely not. In the book I’m thinking of, there’s just the one chapter about American socialists. The book covers a lot of ground.
Probably Alan Wolfe’s One Nation After All
Although now that I look at it Wolfe is an American academic, so I guess not.
Well I’ve poked around a bit and one that might fill the bill is Fire & Ice by Michael Adams.
If not that, you might wish to have a wander through Library Thing which seems to have a very good set of chained links - I’m thinking a title or author will pop up as you browse the lists.