An American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser
This classic novel explores the dark side of the American Dream through the story of a young man who, despite his humble beginnings, aspires to climb the social ladder. He becomes involved with two women, one wealthy and one from a working-class background. His ambition and desire for status lead him to commit a crime that ultimately results in his downfall. The novel is a stark examination of the destructive power of unchecked ambition and the moral compromises people are willing to make in pursuit of wealth and status.
The 160th greatest book of all time
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This book is on the following lists:
- 16th on The Modern Library | 100 Best Novels (Modern Library)
- 21st on Entertainment Weekly's Top 100 Novels (Entertainment Weekly)
- 53rd on The 100 Best Novels of the 20th Century (Folha de São Paulo)
- 68th on The Novel 100: A Ranking of the Greatest Novels of All Time (The Novel 100)
- 88th on Radcliffe's 100 Best Novels (Radcliffe Publishing Course)
- 96th on 20th Century's Greatest Hits: 100 English-Language Books of Fiction (Larry McCaffery)
- 210th on The Complete 500: OCLC (OCLC)
- 307th on Our Users' Favorite Books of All Time (The Greatest Books Users)
- Inteliquest's World's 100 Greatest Books of All-Time (InteliQuest)
- The Great American Novels (The Atlantic)
- 1000 Novels Everyone Must Read (The Guardian)
- "Our Readable Century", The Best Books of the 20th Century (January Magazine)
- The College Board: 101 Great Books Recommended for College-Bound Readers (The College Board, an American not-for-profit organization)
- The 100 Greatest American Novels, 1893 – 1993 (Jeff O'Neal at Bookriot.com)
- Världsbiblioteket (The World Library) (Tidningen Boken)
- TIME Magazine All Time 100 Novels (TIME Magazine)
- Finest Works of Fiction (Martin Seymour-Smith and Editors)
- The Dream of the Great American Novel (Book)
- Harold Bloom's The Western Canon (The Western Canon (Book) by Harold Bloom)