Download or read book An American Dream written by Norman Mailer and published by Random House Trade Paperbacks. This book was released on 2015-02-17 with total page 290 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this wild battering ram of a novel, which was originally published to vast controversy in 1965, Norman Mailer creates a character who might be a fictional precursor of the philosopher-killer he would later profile in The Executioner’s Song. As Stephen Rojack, a decorated war hero and former congressman who murders his wife in a fashionable New York City high-rise, runs amok through the city in which he was once a privileged citizen, Mailer peels away the layers of our social norms to reveal a world of pure appetite and relentless cruelty. One part Nietzsche, one part de Sade, and one part Charlie Parker, An American Dream grabs the reader by the throat and refuses to let go. Praise for An American Dream “Perhaps the only serious New York novel since The Great Gatsby.”—Joan Didion, National Review “A devil’s encyclopedia of our secret visions and desires . . . the expression of a devastatingly alive and original creative mind.”—Life “A work of fierce concentration . . . perfectly, and often brilliantly, realistic [with] a pattern of remarkable imaginative coherence and intensity.”—Harper’s “At once violent, educated, and cool . . . This is our history as Hawthorne might have written it.”—Commentary Praise for Norman Mailer “[Norman Mailer] loomed over American letters longer and larger than any other writer of his generation.”—The New York Times “A writer of the greatest and most reckless talent.”—The New Yorker “Mailer is indispensable, an American treasure.”—The Washington Post “A devastatingly alive and original creative mind.”—Life “Mailer is fierce, courageous, and reckless and nearly everything he writes has sections of headlong brilliance.”—The New York Review of Books “The largest mind and imagination [in modern] American literature . . . Unlike just about every American writer since Henry James, Mailer has managed to grow and become richer in wisdom with each new book.”—Chicago Tribune “Mailer is a master of his craft. His language carries you through the story like a leaf on a stream.”—The Cincinnati Post

Download or read book American Dreams written by Peter Frisch and published by Dramatists Play Service Inc. This book was released on 1987-10 with total page 84 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: THE STORY: Made up of eighteen monologues and divided into six segments (fantasies, nightmares, hallucinations, sweet dreams, broken reveries and visions), the play uses the voices of real people to convey, with striking effectiveness, a sense of w

Download or read book American Dream Machine written by Matthew Specktor and published by Tin House Books. This book was released on 2014-04-15 with total page 345 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The story of two talent agents and their three troubled boys, heirs to Hollywood royalty; a sweeping narrative about fathers and sons, the movie business, and the sundry sea changes that have shaped Hollywood and, by extension, American life. American Dream Machine is the story of an iconic striver, a classic self-made man in the vein of Jay Gatsby or Augie March. It's the story of a talent agent and his troubled sons, two generations of Hollywood royalty. It's a sweeping narrative about parents and children, the movie business, and the sundry sea changes that have shaped Hollywood, and by extension, American life. Beau Rosenwald—overweight, not particularly handsome, and improbably charismatic—arrives in Los Angeles in 1962 with nothing but an ill-fitting suit and a pair of expensive brogues. By the late 1970s he has helped found the most successful agency in Hollywood. Through the eyes of his son, we watch Beau and his partner go to war, waging a seismic battle that redraws the lines of an entire industry. We watch Beau rise and fall and rise again, in accordance with the cultural transformations that dictate the fickle world of movies. We watch Beau's partner, the enigmatic and cerebral Williams Farquarsen, struggle to contain himself, to control his impulses and consolidate his power. And we watch two generations of men fumble and thrive across the LA landscape, learning for themselves the shadows and costs exacted by success and failure. Mammalian, funny, and filled with characters both vital and profound, American Dream Machine is a piercing interrogation of the role—nourishing, as well as destructive—that illusion plays in all our lives.

Download or read book In Pursuit of the American Dream written by Bob Dotson and published by Scribner. This book was released on 1985 with total page 296 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In each of the last fifteen years Bob Dotson has traveled more than one hundred thousand miles, to all the forgotten corners of America, looking for the extraordinary in the ordinary lives of people "in pursuit of the American dream." Now, for the first time, his highly acclaimed television reports have been collected in print, to be read by his fans and discovered by a whole new audience.

Download or read book The Real American Dream written by Andrew Delbanco and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 2000-09 with total page 164 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: One of the nation's premier literary scholars takes a broad look at the way Americans have reached beyond worldly desires for a spirituality. Copyright © Libri GmbH. All rights reserved.

Download or read book I Was Their American Dream written by Malaka Gharib and published by Clarkson Potter. This book was released on 2019-04-30 with total page 162 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “A portrait of growing up in America, and a portrait of family, that pulls off the feat of being both intimately specific and deeply universal at the same time. I adored this book.”—Jonny Sun “[A] high-spirited graphical memoir . . . Gharib’s wisdom about the power and limits of racial identity is evident in the way she draws.”—NPR WINNER OF THE ARAB AMERICAN BOOK AWARD • NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY NPR • The New York Public Library • Kirkus Reviews I Was Their American Dream is at once a coming-of-age story and a reminder of the thousands of immigrants who come to America in search for a better life for themselves and their children. The daughter of parents with unfulfilled dreams themselves, Malaka navigated her childhood chasing her parents' ideals, learning to code-switch between her family's Filipino and Egyptian customs, adapting to white culture to fit in, crushing on skater boys, and trying to understand the tension between holding onto cultural values and trying to be an all-American kid. Malaka Gharib's triumphant graphic memoir brings to life her teenage antics and illuminates earnest questions about identity and culture, while providing thoughtful insight into the lives of modern immigrants and the generation of millennial children they raised. Malaka's story is a heartfelt tribute to the American immigrants who have invested their future in the promise of the American dream. Praise for I Was Their American Dream “In this time when immigration is such a hot topic, Malaka Gharib puts an engaging human face on the issue. . . . The push and pull first-generation kids feel is portrayed with humor and love, especially humor. . . . Gharib pokes fun at all of the cultures she lives in, able to see each of them with an outsider’s wry eye, while appreciating them with an insider’s close experience. . . . The question of ‘What are you?’ has never been answered with so much charm.”—Marissa Moss, New York Journal of Books “Forthright and funny, Gharib fiercely claims her own American dream.”—Booklist “Thoughtful and relatable, this touching account should be shared across generations.”– Library Journal “This charming graphic memoir riffs on the joys and challenges of developing a unique ethnic identity.”– Publishers Weekly

Download or read book CLASSICS The American Dream and written by Edward Albee and published by . This book was released on with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book The Dream of the Great American Novel written by Lawrence Buell and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 2014-02-10 with total page 582 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The idea of "the great American novel" continues to thrive almost as vigorously as in its nineteenth-century heyday, defying 150 years of attempts to dismiss it as amateurish or obsolete. In this landmark book, the first in many years to take in the whole sweep of national fiction, Lawrence Buell reanimates this supposedly antiquated idea, demonstrating that its history is a key to the dynamics of national literature and national identity itself. The dream of the G.A.N., as Henry James nicknamed it, crystallized soon after the Civil War. In fresh, in-depth readings of selected contenders from the 1850s onward in conversation with hundreds of other novels, Buell delineates four "scripts" for G.A.N. candidates. One, illustrated by The Scarlet Letter, is the adaptation of the novel's story-line by later writers, often in ways that are contrary to the original author's own design. Other aspirants, including The Great Gatsby and Invisible Man, engage the American Dream of remarkable transformation from humble origins. A third script, seen in Uncle Tom's Cabin and Beloved, is the family saga that grapples with racial and other social divisions. Finally,mega-novels from Moby-Dick to Gravity's Rainbow feature assemblages of characters who dramatize in microcosm the promise and pitfalls of democracy. The canvas of the great American novel is in constant motion, reflecting revolutions in fictional fashion, the changing face of authorship, and the inseparability of high culture from popular. As Buell reveals, the elusive G.A.N. showcases the myth of the United States as a nation perpetually under construction.

Download or read book Immigrants and the American Dream written by William A. V. Clark and published by Guilford Press. This book was released on 2003-06-06 with total page 282 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The United States has absorbed nearly 10 million immigrants in the past decade. This book examines who the new immigrants are, where they live, and who among them are gaining entry into the American middle class. Discussed are the complex factors that promote or hinder immigrant success, as well as the varying opportunities and constraints met by those living in particular regions. Extensive data are synthesized on key dimensions of immigrant achievement: income level, professional status, and rates of homeownership and political participation. Also provided is a balanced analysis of the effects of immigration on broader socioeconomic, geographic, and political trends. Examining the extent to which contemporary immigrants are realizing the American dream, this book explores crucial policy questions and challenges that face our diversifying society.

Download or read book Aspen and the American Dream written by Jenny Stuber and published by Univ of California Press. This book was released on 2021-03-23 with total page 303 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How is it possible for a town to exist where the median household income is about $73,000, but the median home price is about $4,000,000? Boring into the "impossible" math of Aspen, Colorado, Stuber explores how middle-class people have found a way to live in this supergentrified town. Interviewing a range of residents, policymakers, and officials, Stuber shows that what resolves the math equation between incomes and home values in Aspen, Colorado—the X-factor that makes middle-class life possible—is the careful orchestration of diverse class interests within local politics and the community. She explores how this is achieved through a highly regulatory and extractive land use code that provides symbolic and material value to highly affluent investors and part-year residents, as well as less-affluent locals, many of whom benefit from an array of subsidies—including an extensive affordable housing program—that redistribute economic resources in ways that make it possible for middle-class residents to live there. Stuber further examines how Latinos, who provide much of the service work in Aspen and who tend to live outside the town, fit into the social geography of one of the most unequal places in the country. Overall, Stuber argues that the Aspen's ability to balance the interests of its diverse class constituencies is not a foregone conclusion; rather, it is the result of efforts by local stakeholders—citizens, government, developers, and vacationers—to preserve the town’s unique feel and value, and "keep Aspen, Aspen" in all its complex dynamics.

Download or read book An American Dream written by Norman Mailer and published by HarperPerennial. This book was released on 2006 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A key backlist title from the highly acclaimed author of The Naked and the Dead and The Fight. War hero, ex-Congressman, a professor of 'popular but somewhat notorious reputation', television personality and husband of the rich and beautiful Deborah ('a girl who would have been bored by a diamond as big as the Ritz'), Stephen Rojack lived the American Dream. But his enviable life concealed a strange tension, the constant 'itch to jump', and when one day he finally cracks and strangles his luscious wife, he unleashes a personality of undreamt-of ferocity. A wanted murderer, Rojack is suddenly catapulted into an alien world of gangsters, crumbling tenements and downtown bars. Here, he meets Cherry, a small-time singer who ekes out her living in sleazy nightclubs, waiting for a break. She's the woman Rojack falls for, dangerously, desperately, tragically... A powerful exploration of one man's quest for depravity, An American Dream shocked the USA on first publication in 1965 with its graphic depictions of sex and violence. One of the key works of twentieth-century American literature, the novel's white-hot prose makes it, for many, Mailer's finest achievement.

Download or read book Restoring the American Dream written by Robert Ringer and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2010-08-03 with total page 258 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Completely updated edition of one of the classic works of conservative literature Long before the advent of conservative talk radio and Fox News, Robert Ringer was an outspoken advocate for the cause of freedom and free enterprise. In this classic work–updated for the 21st century–Ringer’s basic premise is that liberty must be given a higher priority than all other objectives. The economic and political calamity that he warned about in the late seventies is now upon us, and his new edition of Restoring the American Dream is sure to resonate with the feelings of today’s angry voters. In his book, Ringer explains that: • The American Dream is not about increased government benefits and government-created “rights,” but, rather, about individualism, self responsibility, and freedom–including the freedom to succeed or fail on one’s own • The barbarians are not at the gates; they are already inside • Ordinary citizens no longer tell their elected officials what to do. Rather, government tells them what to do–and backs it up with force • The desire of people to band together to bring about quick, short term solutions to their problems through government intervention has perpetuated a cycle that has nearly destroyed the American Dream With Washington continuing to expand government power and spending at a record pace, Restoring the American Dream is a voice of sanity in a world gone mad.

Download or read book All American Dream Dolls written by David Haynes and published by . This book was released on 1997 with total page 300 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What's an attractive, successful, all-around-together girl to do when she's dumped at 65 miles per hour on the way to a romantic getaway? If you're Deneen Wilkerson, you retreat to your mother's suburban home in St. Louis for a solitary orgy of snacks, talk shows and mental hygiene. Deneen's crash--and her wildly funny, improbable rebirth--is the basis of this new novel by the acclaimed author of "Somebody Else's Mama" and "Live at Five."

Download or read book American Dream written by Jason DeParle and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2005-08-30 with total page 436 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this definitive work, two-time Pulitzer finalist Jason DeParle, author of A Good Provider Is One Who Leaves, cuts between the mean streets of Milwaukee and the corridors of Washington to produce a masterpiece of literary journalism. At the heart of the story are three cousins whose different lives follow similar trajectories. Leaving welfare, Angie puts her heart in her work. Jewell bets on an imprisoned man. Opal guards a tragic secret that threatens her kids and her life. DeParle traces their family history back six generations to slavery and weaves poor people, politicians, reformers, and rogues into a spellbinding epic. With a vivid sense of humanity, DeParle demonstrates that although we live in a country where anyone can make it, generation after generation some families don’t. To read American Dream is to understand why.

Download or read book The 3rd American Dream written by Suresh K. Sharma and published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform. This book was released on 2014-10-22 with total page 228 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An entrepreneur offers a vision for a new wave of American economic success. A unique, original and timely recommendation for the economic future of the United States in the 21st century, offering well-researched and well thought-out proposals sure to spark discussion! "Mr. Sharma is an intellectual business leader". Drawing on history, economic theory and his own experience as an immigrant, an employee and an entrepreneur, Sharma (Global Outsourcing, 2005) lays out a road map for American prosperity based on innovation and a high-tech infrastructure that allows the best and brightest to both collaborate and compete. The book begins with an overview of what the author defines as the two previous American dreams: one in an agricultural economy based on family farms in the 19th century, and the other in a broad base of homeowners subsidized by government policy in the 20th century. Sharma's vision for the 21st century and beyond relies on a governmental policy that provides a structure for federally backed startup funding—a structure, he says, more effective than venture capitalists focused on quick profits and one that will become self-sustaining as successful businesses share equity rather than repay interest. That startup funding would be supported by a network of national and regional hubs for education and innovation, guided by the understanding that manufacturing as well as the service industry are necessary for a stable economy.The book goes into detail as to how the education, health and energy sectors would develop under this plan. It is clear that Sharma has thought through the details of his fundamental reorganization of the economy, as the book offers not only big-picture theoretical explanations for his advice, but also itemized discussions of how his proposed structures, such as a Cabinet-level innovation department and an integrated system of in-person and remote education, should be set up, funded and operated. The book successfully handles a very broad and integrated topic in a very clear and distilled way. It is almost breathtaking in its scope, vision and sheer audacity.Although the book is at times overly enthusiastic about American uniquenesses - "In any other country, if one played well and lost the game it is still applauded, but not in the United States”; "We forget that Americans, by nature, are the most competitive people on this planet” - Sharma does point out that he reached this conclusion after years of international experience. After all, "While the world is copying the past, America is innovating" for future.Sharma's call to the 'policy makers to be predictive to stay relevant to the present' is very timely in the age of big data analytics. It is time for everyone to understand what needs to be done to create a futuristic business and life ecosystem that unleash the potential of each and every human being on this planet. USA has a distinct advantage to show a practical roadmap for that!This is the revised 2nd Edition of the book that has already received very positive endorsements over last one year.

Download or read book Chasing the American Dream written by Mark Robert Rank PhD and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2014-03-01 with total page 234 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The United States has been epitomized as a land of opportunity, where hard work and skill can bring personal success and economic well-being. The American Dream has captured the imagination of people from all walks of life, and to many, it represents the heart and soul of the country. But there is another, darker side to the bargain that America strikes with its people -- it is the price we pay for our individual pursuit of the American Dream. That price can be found in the economic hardship present in the lives of millions of Americans. In Chasing the American Dream, leading social scientists Mark Robert Rank, Thomas A. Hirschl, and Kirk A. Foster provide a new and innovative look into a curious dynamic -- the tension between the promise of economic opportunities and rewards and the amount of turmoil that Americans encounter in their quest for those rewards. The authors explore questions such as: -What percentage of Americans achieve affluence, and how much income mobility do we actually have? -Are most Americans able to own a home, and at what age? -How is it that nearly 80 percent of us will experience significant economic insecurity at some point between ages 25 and 60? -How can access to the American Dream be increased? Combining personal interviews with dozens of Americans and a longitudinal study covering 40 years of income data, the authors tell the story of the American Dream and reveal a number of surprises. The risk of economic vulnerability has increased substantially over the past four decades, and the American Dream is becoming harder to reach and harder to keep. Yet for most Americans, the Dream lies not in wealth, but in economic security, pursuing one's passions, and looking toward the future. Chasing the American Dream provides us with a new understanding into the dynamics that shape our fortunes and a deeper insight into the importance of the American Dream for the future of the country.

Download or read book Reclaiming the American Dream written by Richard C. Cornuelle and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2017-07-05 with total page 236 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book was the first to sketch the full dimensions of the nation's voluntary sector, give it a name (the independent sector), explain its unfamiliar metabolism, and imagine its enormous unused potential for defining the central problems of an industrial society accurately and acting on them effectively. Upon publication, George Gallup said the book has sparked "the most dramatic shift in American thinking since the New Deal."