Take Back the American Dream Bookstore

We are currently selling books by authors and on topics featured at Take Back the American Dream 2012. If you weren't able to make it to the bookstore at this year's conference, it isn't too late! Check out the great selection of progressive books below.

NEW! Peter Dreier's honor roll of progressive leaders, "The 100 Greatest Americans of the 20th Century: A Social Justice Hall of Fame."

Thanks to Powell's Books, a portion of each purchase will support the work of the Campaign for America's Future.

Authors (by last name):
A-F | G-L | M-R | S-Z

	It's the Middle Class, Stupid! James Carville and Stan Greenberg "It’s the Middle Class, Stupid!" confirms what we have all suspected: Washington and Wall Street have really screwed things up for the average American. Work has been devalued. Education costs are out of sight. Effort and ambition have never been so scantily rewarded. Political guru James Carville and pollster extraordinaire Stan Greenberg argue that our political parties must admit their failures and the electorate must reclaim its voice, because taking on the wealthy and the privileged is not class warfare—it is a matter of survival. "It’s the Middle Class, Stupid!" provides eye-opening and provocative arguments on where our government—including the White House—has gone wrong, and what voters can do about it.
	99 to 1: How Wealth Inequality is Wrecking the World and What We Can Do About It Chuck Collins The focus of the worldwide Occupy protests is creating a world that works for 99% of people and businesses, not just the richest and most powerful 1%. But who are the 99%? Who are the 1%? How extensive and systemic is inequality in different areas of society? What are its causes and consequence? How is inequality changing in our world? And what can be done about it?
	Showdown: The Inside Story of How Obama Fought Back Against Boehner, Cantor, and the Tea Party David Corn Veteran journalist David Corn—Washington Bureau Chief for Mother Jones magazine and New York Times bestselling author of Hubris (with Michael Isikoff) and The Lies of George W. Bush—now brings us Showdown, the dramatic inside story of Barack Obama’s fight to save his presidency. With Bob Woodward-esque insight and narrative flair, Corn takes readers into the White House and behind the political scenes during the beleaguered president’s pivotal third year, and explores the most earth-shaking events of the Obama presidency—from the game changing 2010 elections to the Arab Spring, the debt ceiling battle with Congressional Republicans, the killing of Osama bin Laden and beyond.
	The 100 Greatest Americans of the 20th Century: A Social Justice Hall of Fame Peter Dreier This colorful and witty history of the most influential progressive leaders of the twentieth century and beyond, is the perfect antidote to the miseducation about America's progressive history. A hundred years ago, any soapbox orator who called for women's suffrage, laws protecting the environment, an end to lynching, or a federal minimum wage was considered a utopian dreamer or a dangerous socialist. Now we take these ideas for granted – because the radical ideas of one generation are often the common sense of the next. We all stand on the shoulders of earlier generations of radicals and reformers who challenged the status quo of their day. This book chronicles and celebrates those people.
	So Rich, So Poor: Why It's So Hard to End Poverty in America Peter Edelman If the nations gross national income—over $14 trillion—were divided evenly across the entire U.S. population, every household could call itself middle class. Yet the income-level disparity in this country is now wider than at any point since the Great Depression. In 2010 the average salary for CEOs on the S&P 500 was over $1 million—climbing to over $11 million when all forms of compensation are accounted for—while the current median household income for African Americans is just over $32,000. How can some be so rich, while others are so poor?
	Nickle and Dimed Barbara Ehrenreich Millions of Americans work full time, year round, for poverty-level wages. In 1998, Barbara Ehrenreich decided to join them. She was inspired in part by the rhetoric surrounding welfare reform, which promised that a job — any job — can be the ticket to a better life. But how does anyone survive, let alone prosper, on $6 an hour? To find out, Ehrenreich left her home, took the cheapest lodgings she could find, and accepted whatever jobs she was offered. Moving from Florida to Maine to Minnesota, she worked as a waitress, a hotel maid, a cleaning woman, a nursing-home aide, and a Walmart sales clerk. She lived in trailer parks and crumbling residential motels. Very quickly, she discovered that no job is truly "unskilled," that even the lowliest occupations require exhausting mental and muscular effort.
	The Servant Economy: Where America's Elite Is Sending the Middle Class Jeff Faux In his acclaimed 2006 book, The Global Class War, economist Jeff Faux predicted a major financial catastrophe in the next few years. Sometimes, one would rather be wrong. In The Servant Economy, Faux surveys the wreckage and asks: Where do we go from here? The economy may recover from the financial crash, but the historic and geographic cushions that have kept Americans prosperous are deflated. The United States can no longer support the dreams of Wall Street for boundless speculative wealth, the military-industrial complex for global hegemony, and the middle class for rising living standards. One of these dreams? Certainly. Two? Perhaps. But not all three.
	Pity the Billionaire: The Hard-Times Swindle and the Unlikely Comeback of the Right Thomas Frank In Pity the Billionaire, Frank, the great chronicler of American paradox, examines the peculiar mechanism by which dire economic circumstances have delivered wildly unexpected political results. Using firsthand reporting, a deep knowledge of the American Right, and a wicked sense of humor, he gives us the first full diagnosis of the cultural malady that has transformed collapse into profit, reconceived the Founding Fathers as heroes from an Ayn Rand novel, and enlisted the powerless in a fan club for the prosperous. The understanding Frank reaches is at once startling, original, and profound.
	Inequality and Instability: A Study of the World Economy Just Before the Great Crisis James K. Galbraith Leading economist James K. Galbraith demonstrates in this book that finance is the driver converting inequality into instability. Those without money--made more numerous by inequality--find little recourse but to the ancient remedy of the loan. Their urges and needs, for bad and for good, are abetted by the aggressive desire of those with money to lend. But if the balloon of debt explodes, as it did in 2008, it disrupts an entire economy built upon a financial house of cards. And not merely in the United States: debt crises and economic instability can be linked to inequality all around the world.
	Sister Citizen: Shame, Stereotypes, and Black Women in America Melissa Harris-Perry In this groundbreaking book, Melissa V. Harris-Perry uses multiple methods of inquiry, including literary analysis, political theory, focus groups, surveys, and experimental research, to understand more deeply black women's political and emotional responses to pervasive negative race and gender images. Not a traditional political science work concerned with office-seeking, voting, or ideology, Sister Citizen instead explores how African American women understand themselves as citizens and what they expect from political organizing. Harris-Perry shows that the shared struggle to preserve an authentic self and secure recognition as a citizen links together black women in America, from the anonymous survivors of Hurricane Katrina to the current First Lady of the United States.
	Twilight of the Elites: America After Meritocracy Christopher Hayes Mixing deft political analysis, timely social commentary, and deep historical understanding, Twilight of the Elites describes how the society we have come to inhabit – utterly forgiving at the top and relentlessly punitive at the bottom – produces leaders who are out of touch with the people they have been trusted to govern. Hayes argues that the public's failure to trust the federal government, corporate America, and the media has led to a crisis of authority that threatens to engulf not just our politics but our day-to-day lives.
	Rebuild the Dream Van Jones Outraged by the escalating attacks on Americas middle class and working families, this book issues a bold defense of the progressive values that made the twentieth century an American century. Rejecting the fashionable mantra of cut-backs and austerity, Jones makes the case for public policies and investments that will create 10 million, good-paying American jobs. Along the way, he argues that the 21st Century can be the Second American Century, if the deep patriots stay true to the American ideal of “liberty and justice for all.”
	End this Depression Now! Paul Krugman The Great Recession is more than four years old--and counting. Yet, as Paul Krugman points out in this powerful volley, "Nations rich in resources, talent, and knowledge--all the ingredients for prosperity and a decent standard of living for all--remain in a state of intense pain." How bad have things gotten? How did we get stuck in what now can only be called a depression? And above all, how do we free ourselves? Krugman pursues these questions with his characteristic lucidity and insight. He has a powerful message for anyone who has suffered over these past four years--a quick, strong recovery is just one step away, if our leaders can find the "intellectual clarity and political will" to end this depression now.
	The People's Pension (Signed Edition) Eric Laursen The People's Pension is both groundbreaking history and an indispensable guide for anyone concerned about one of the biggest issues in the upcoming election. With 95 percent of Americans participating in the program either as beneficiaries or through their payroll tax contributions, Social Security is quite literally the "glue" that binds Americans together as a community. Yet in the aftermath of the debt reduction deal between Barack Obama and congressional Republicans, the 2012 election promises to be a kind of referendum on the size and role of government — including economic support programs like Social Security. Eric Laursen offers ideas for protecting the program for future generations. (E-book version also available.)
	It's the Jobs, Stupid E.A. Madden What if we could turn back the clock to a time when jobs were plentiful, when tax revenue was high, and when people could look forward to retirement? E.A. Madden asks these questions and explains where our leaders went wrong and why they abandoned the middle class. His how-to guide provides step-by-step strategies to bring U.S. prosperity back to all its citizens, not just a chosen few. In a book packed with solutions to today's problems, you'll discover a convincing history of events that led to the nation's current political and economic problems, the economic policies of former presidents, strategies to restore general prosperity and preeminence in the world, and simple actions to bring jobs back to the nation. Written with nonpartisan candor and a dry wit, this book is for anyone concerned about his or her job and the future of the country. (E-book version also available.)
	The Self-Made Myth: And the Truth about How Government Helps Individuals and Businesses Succeed Brian Miller This book exposes the false claim that business success is the result of heroic individual effort with little or no outside help. Brian Miller and Mike Lapham bust the myth and present profiles of business leaders who recognize the public investments and supports that made their success possible, including Warren Buffett, Ben Cohen of Ben and Jerrys, New Belgium Brewing CEO Kim Jordan, and others. The book also thoroughly demolishes the claims of supposedly self-made individuals such as Donald Trump and Ross Perot. How we view the creation of wealth and individual success is critical because it shapes our choices on taxes, regulation, public investments in schools and infrastructure, CEO pay, and more. It takes a village to raise a business. It's time to recognize that fact.
	The Republican Brain Chris Mooney Science writer Chris Mooney explores brain scans, polls, and psychology experiments to explain why conservatives today believe more wrong things; appear more likely than Democrats to oppose new ideas and less likely to change their beliefs in the face of new facts; and sometimes respond to compelling evidence by doubling down on their current beliefs.
	Uprising: How Wisconsin Renewed the Politics of Protest, from Madison to Wall Street John Nichols The protest movement that captivated the nation and paved the path for Occupy Wall Street. More than 100,000 public employees, teachers, students, and their allies descended on the capital in Madison, Wisconsin after Governor Scott Walker announced his plan to eliminate the right of public sector employees to unionize. As state legislatures across the US (in Ohio and New Hampshire, to name a few) take up union busting measures, Nichols shows how the Wisconsin case is a blueprint for progressives around America who've had enough. He also explores how Wisconsin protesters organized and inspired the Occupy Wall Street movement.
	The Great Divergence: America's Growing Inequality Crisis and What We Can Do about It Timothy Noah The income gap has been blamed on everything from computers to immigration, but its causes and consequences call for a patient, non-partisan exploration. Timothy Noah delivers this urgently needed inquiry, ignoring political rhetoric and drawing on the best work of contemporary researchers to peer beyond conventional wisdom. Noah explains not only how the Great Divergence has come about, but why it threatens American democracy. Most importantly, Noah explains how we can begin to reverse it.
	The Rich and the Rest of Us: A Poverty Manifesto Tavis Smiley and Cornel West This book is the next step in the journey that began with “The Poverty Tour: A Call to Conscience.” Smiley and West’s 18-city bus tour gave voice to the plight of impoverished Americans of all races, colors, and creeds. With 150 million Americans persistently poor or near poor, the highest numbers in over five decades, Smiley and West argue that now is the time to confront the underlying conditions of systemic poverty in America before it’s too late.
	America the Possible: Manifesto for a New Economy James Gustave Speth In this third volume of his award-winning American Crisis series, James Gustave Speth makes his boldest and most ambitious contribution yet. He looks unsparingly at the sea of troubles in which the United States now finds itself, charts a course through the discouragement and despair commonly felt today, and envisions what he calls America the Possible, an attractive and plausible future that we can still realize.
	How to Be Black Baratunde Thurston Raised by a pro-black, Pan-Afrikan single mother during the crack years of 1980s Washington, DC, and educated at Sidwell Friends School and Harvard University, Baratunde Thurston has over thirty years' experience being black. Now, through stories of his politically inspired Nigerian name, the heroics of his hippie mother, the murder of his drug-abusing father, and other revelatory black details, he shares with readers of all colors his wisdom and expertise in how to be black.
	This Changes Everything: Occupy Wall Street and the 99 Percent Movement Sarah van Gelder Occupy Wall Street protests have spread around the world, with a common slogan of “We are the 99%.” But there is a great deal of confusion and misperception about this movement. This book clarifies the who, what, when, where, why, and how of this movement. It provides profound insight into the movement’s power, messages, significance, methods, and impact. The editors of YES! Magazine bring together voices from inside and outside the protests to show how the meaning and impact of this movement are much bigger and more far-reaching than is being reported.
	The Political Brain: The Role of Emotion in Deciding the Fate of the Nation Drew Westen This is a groundbreaking investigation into the role of emotion in determining the political life of the nation. For two decades Drew Westen, professor of psychology and psychiatry at Emory University, has explored a theory of the mind that differs substantially from the more "dispassionate" notions held by most cognitive psychologists, political scientists, and economists—and Democratic campaign strategists. Westen turns conventional political analyses on their head, suggesting that the question for Democratic politics isn't so much about moving to the right or the left but about moving the electorate. He shows how it can be done through examples of what candidates have said—or could have said—in debates, speeches, and ads. Westen's discoveries could utterly transform electoral arithmetic, showing how a different view of the mind and brain leads to a different way of talking with voters about issues that have tied the tongues of Democrats for much of forty years—such as abortion, guns, taxes, and race.