This two-volume set brings together entries on renowned works that speak to the American dream. Some of the selections are chronicles of experiences, such as Black Elk Speaks and Little House on the Prairie. Others are essays, speeches, poetry, and works of fiction, including Thomas Paine's "Common Sense," Walt Whitman's "Song of Myself," and Jack Kerouac's On the Road. Selections such as Langston Hughes's Montage of a Dream Deferred and Marie Lee's Finding My Voice bring the hopes and struggles of some of America's subcultures to broader awareness. Volume 1 begins with an overview essay introducing the theme of race and prejudice in literature, then presents essays on particular titles. These essays introduce the work and its authors, summarize the plot, analyze themes that relate to the subject of the American dream, and review important historical and cultural events that shaped the author and the work. Readers are also presented with a critical overview discussing how the work was initially received by critics and how it is presently viewed. Accompanying the critical overview is an excerpt from a previously published critical essay discussing the work's relationship to the theme of race and prejudice. Each entry includes sidebars on the author's life and on media adaptations of the work, along with b&w photos of authors and places. Entries on specific works continue in Volume 2, followed by 14 essays on variations on the American dream in different centuries and among different populations, such as the American feminist dream, the Hispanic American dream, and the Southern American dream. This is followed by a list of recommended fiction and nonfiction and a list of media adaptations on each of the 14 essays' themes. The two-volume set also includes a glossary of literary terms and a literary chronology. Annotation ©2007 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)