No book in all of American literature is so finely written as this one. As far as beauty of its language, Moby Dick has few rivals. Captain Ahab is a monomaniac obsessed with hunting the legendary albino whale "Moby Dick". Told from the perspective of Ishmael, an educated sailor, we witness as the voyage continues, Ahab's condition begins to reveal itself, as he projects his anger at the universe, god, fate and the unknown onto the beast. Ahab himself is a victim of the whale, having had his leg severed and digested by the leviathan, only to have it replaced by a leg made of whale ivory. If you haven't yet, it's about time you read this book, as no one should go without being subjected to this American literary treasure.

What does it mean to be an American? Henry James seeks to find out by placing Christopher Newman in Paris, only to have him fall in love with a respectable French lady. Despite his wealth and fortune, the parents are unhappy by the American's lack of status within society and Newman faces the impossible task of winning her over. The identity of America is seen through Newman as the embodiment of a new nation now looking back toward the old world, where the established age old culture and customs can either be rejected or fashioned anew, but nevertheless, the American discovers he is indeed lacking something while traversing the streets of Paris. This early work of Henry James established the author as one of the most important American voices of the 19th century. I've considered Henry James to be the Shakespeare of prose, and this early work allows one to experience James before he has taken the dive into his own style of immense introspection. Many have found late James to be unreadable because the density of his expression is so vast. This early work of James is excellent for anyone who wants to start reading him because his form is still compound so that one can see the architecture of the novel while still being able to experience the brilliance that is his his style of form.

"Stately Paris ignores the existence of these faces bleached by moral or physical suffering; but, then, Paris is in truth an ocean that no line can plumb. You may survey its surface and describe it; but no matter how numerous and painstaking the toilers in this sea, there will always be lonely and unexplored regions in its depths, caverns unknown, flowers and pearls and monsters of the deep overlooked or forgotten by the divers of literature. The Maison Vauquer is one of these curious monstrosities." (Pere Goriot pg 13.) Eugene de Rastignac, a young man in his early twenties, moves into an apartment on the outskirts of Paris. He is ambitious and motivated, that is until he becomes enveloped in the drama of the building as he becomes torn between two morally opposing figures, Vautrin is a ruthless profiteer who wishes to make a Faustian pact with Rastignac., while Goriot, a brilliant business man and Vermicelli maker, starts to liquidate his former fortune so that he might ensure the survival of his two ungrateful daughters. Rastignac must choose his allegiance to either this Mephistopheles or King Lear, in order to secure his inevitable rise in French social climbing.

One of the best works of English Literature, Frankenstein was started by an 18 year old girl and published when she was all but 21. Today the work is stereotyped by the unfortunate association with the early hollywood horror movie that bore little resemblance to the original genius it is inspired by. Surrounded and influenced by the death of loved ones, Victor Frankenstein discovers the secret of reanimating dead tissue with life, and creates a creature from parts he has assembled. Intending the creature to be beautiful, his invention is a monster, but fully capable of sentient thought and seeks to discover why his master abandoned him in such derision.

All modern American literature comes from one book by Mark Twain called 'Huckleberry Finn.'.. But it's the best book we've had. All American writing comes from that. There was nothing before. There has been nothing as good since." -- from Ernest Hemingway, "The Green Hills of Africa" (1934) Although I disagree with Hemmingway's assertion, I agree with his sentiment. The book certainly is the birth of our literary masterworks and one of the few contenders that can be considered to be assigned the title of the great American novel. The story is of a white trash boy escaping his drunken father while helping a slave cross the border to freedom by taking a raft down the Mississippi.

Freedom is the attempt to use the contemporary American setting as the main ingredient for the modern literary epic. Franzen tries to reach Tolstoyian heights with a complex cast of characters engrossed in a social drama as large and encompassing as America is geographically, employing as his tools, devastating irony and ingenious wit, in attempt to portray the Zeitgeist of our time. The plot centers on a middle class family moving into the suburbs of St. Paul Minnesota. Walter and Patty Berglund are college sweethearts who have two children. Joey, his son, has rebelled by moving in with his girlfriend next door, whose political affiliations, class and manners are the juxtaposition of the Berglund's. As the novel progresses the idyllic American family is put to the test under the weight of time and culture.

Are you looking for a really special book for a kid for the holidays? No, I mean a really special book. One they will remember you picking out for them? One they will not stop thanking you for? Down the Mysterly River is that book. It’s about a top-notch boy scout named Max who, despite his scouting expertise, finds himself lost in the woods. He encounters a badger, a black bear and a cat, all of whom talk. This is the stuff of fables, entrenched firmly in a deep understanding for the craft of children’s books. This is a must read. It is also our children’s book club selection in March.

Moonwalking with Einstein by Joshua Foer Wouldn't it be nice to remember everything worth remembering? It's possible. Moonwalking with Einstein gives you a glimpse of the world of "mental athletes", people who train their minds to remember the order of hundreds of decks of playing cards, thousands of numbers of books verbatim, etc. But most people who compete have average mental processes and capabilities. How do they do it? Ancient techniques of the Greeks such as spacial recognition are explained. After reading this book, you'll never have trouble remembering the names of people you just met, no item will be forsaken on your grocery list, and poems that you always wanted to recite can be recalled with greater ease. This is a brilliant book.