AMERICAN DREAMS, LOST & FOUND

This is a first edition of American Dreams, Lost and Found, by the American writer Studs (Louis) Terkel (1912 –2008). This book was out of print for a long time—it has recently been revived. If you look around for copies of this book, they all say 'First Edition 1983', but the date on this copy is 1980. Terkel was an author, historian, actor, and broadcaster. He received the Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction in 1985 for The Good War and is best remembered for his oral histories of common Americans, and for hosting a long-running radio show. The New York Times Book Review calls this collection Terkel's best. In it, he persuades Arnold Schwarzenegger, Ted Turner, Jesse Helms, Joan Crawford and many others to tell their versions of The American Dream. In this group portrait of hopes, we see that American reality defies our stereotyped expectations. Starting with an embittered winner of the Miss U.S.A. contest who sees the con behind the dream of success, Terkel discusses ideals and aspirations with the businessman enamoured of success, the farm kids dreaming of the city, the city boys determined to get out, the Boston Brahmin, and the KKK member. This copy is in near-perfect condition. As you can see, there is a ¼" tear to the top of the spine, which can be repaired. And someone put a tick mark beside a page number on the Table of Contents. No dust jacket. 475 pages. Plain black boards with brilliant silver lettering on the spine, along with a silver image of the Statue of Liberty. Note: If you are outside of North America, the quoted shipping price is for surface mail without tracking. For other options, please contact me.