The price tag on the White House reveals that living the American dream isn’t cheap. And as David Shipler suggests in The Working Poor, the American dream also doesn’t come easy to most — no matter how hard they try.

BEST OF OFF THE SHELF (SO FAR)
2004 Best of Off the Shelf

Just as Texans are told to remember the Alamo, Jews are told to remember the Holocaust. But as David Bezmozgis suggests in Natasha and Other Stories, maybe it’s time for Jews to remember that they’ve also wandered through the desert and trekked across international waters.

Reading about violence isn’t everyone’s idea of leisure, but navigating the sadism of Benjamin Weissman’s world — and our own — certainly breaks up the monotony of daily life.

Ten years after the death of National Book Award winner Ralph Ellison, his posthumously published novel Juneteenth offers lessons for our post-9/11 world.

About our book club for readers.

Introducing ITF — Off the Shelf!