American Dreams: Lost and Found [Mass Market Paperback]

Studs Terkel (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 12, 1985

Americans, their hopes, remembrances and achievements come alive in this bestselling collection by the Pulitzer Prize-winning oral historian.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Here is raw material for one thousand novels in one medium-sized book!... Incomparable. Studs Terkel's done it again. -- Margaret Atwood

In American Dreams, Mr. Terkel, a superb editor as well as the ideal listener... becomes Walt Whitman. -- John Leonard

Studs Terkel has captured the melody of America. -- Nicholas Von Hoffman

Studs Terkel shows America from the inside out -- a fascinating and revelatory portrait. -- Ronald Steel

The best of Terkel's works. A stirring, hopeful book. -- Robert Sherrill, front page, New York Times Book Review --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Inside Flap

Americans, their hopes, remembrances and achievements come alive in this bestselling collection by the Pulitzer Prize-winning oral historian.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback
• Publisher: Ballantine Books (July 12, 1985)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345329937
• ISBN-13: 978-0345329936
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.2 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,105,131 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Studs Terkel (1912-2008) was a free spirit, an outspoken populist, a Pulitzer Prize-winning author, a terrible ham, and one of the best-loved characters on the American scene. Born in New York in 1912, he lived in Chicago for over eight decades. His radio show was carried on stations throughout the country.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

43 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It opened my eyes, May 3, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: American Dreams: Lost and Found (Paperback)

A wonderful reflection of the diversity of dreams and realities of so many people. Terkel collects people from all walks of life and probes there dreams--what they are, what they were, how they've changed.

He engages them to tell there stories of success and failure, hardship and longing, understanding and transformation.

I never felt more in touch with the unique nature of America than when I was reading this book. I would recommend it to anyone.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting look at America by Americans, May 28, 2009

By 

K.A.Goldberg (Chicago) - See all my reviews

This review is from: American Dreams: Lost and Found (Paperback)

Gritty journalist/author Studs Terkel (1912-2008) spent decades letting people tell their stories, and the result is more than a dozen solid oral histoires. This 1980 effort is one of his best, with over 100 Americans talking about their lives and that ever-elusive American Dream. Most interviewees try defining the dream, but focus more effectively on their work, successes, and (often) frustrations. Ms. USA (1973) discusses the shallowness of her title. Frank Wills describes a lack of opportunities after uncovering the Watergate break-in. Anti-nuclear activist Sam Lovejoy describes opposing new power plants in Massachusetts. Businessman Ted Turner discusses his upcoming news network (CNN), while a football lineman confesses using false anger to inspire his game. We hear from business leaders, liberal activists (a Terkel staple), the poor of Appalachia, and aged children of immigrants (who also remember their parents). Also chipping in are street-wise community workers, a 1963 Civil Rights marcher, and politicians as diverse as Detroit Mayor Coleman Young and right-wing Senator Jesse Helms (both are less embarrassing than expected).

As usual, many of Terkel's interviewees are from Chicago (plus Kentucky, Oregon, and New England) and on balance they tilt a bit leftwards with skepticism towards the establishment. Still, this is an interesting look at, about, and from ordinary Americans. Readers should also see Terkel's other top efforts, such as WORKING, THE GOOD WAR (World War II), and HARD TIMES (Great Depression).

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Americana and the American Dream, July 9, 2010

By 

Judah (New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: American Dreams: Lost and Found (Paperback)

As advertised! The book consists of the pared down life story interviews of hundreds of Americans (two through five pages for most), and highlights both the hopes of younger and the bitterness of the elderly. American Dreams: Lost and Found interviews people from all walks of life and races, including civil rights activists, house wives, Miss America herself (winner in 1970), a Klansman, a coal miner, professors, unionizers, politicians, entrepreneurs, hippies, flappers, heroes, criminals, and even a few famous people like Arnold Schwarzenegger. It manages to accurately convey the intangible concept of 'American Dream,' which before reading this book, I thought would be impossible.

Be warned this isn't a book to read in one or even ten sittings; it's like reading hundreds of short stories, each covering a lifetime of experiences.