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American novel

'War Is Beautiful.' By David Shields. powerHouse, 2015. 112p. HB,  $39.95.

Picturing Books

January 29, 2016

“Picture books,” children call them—but they’re not just for children anymore. 

<i>The Dream of the Great American Novel</i> by Lawrence Buell. Harvard University Press, 2014. 500p. HB, $39.95.

The Big Read: Can a Single Book Sum Up a Nation?

As soon becomes apparent, The Dream of the Great American Novel simply isn’t aimed at the common reader or even at many uncommon ones. The grateful audience for this book will be other scholars and teachers of American literature, who will plunder its pages for decades to come.