"American Avenue" will make you laugh and cry, but perhaps most of all, think. You'll find the warmth of Ivan Doig, the coloration of Annie Proulx, the cadence of Timothy Egan and the philosophical undertones of Ayn Rand and Tom Robbins.
It is a collage of the American condition at the beginning of the 21st century. Short stories, poems, longer stories, rants and essays-sketches and analyses that reveal the complexity and diversity that give America its resilience and hope.
As Mr. Steding writes, "Americans are both grotesque and lovely, producing a conundrum so grand as to be insoluble by either allies or enemies." The final essay, "The Future of American Power: A Manifesto for Change" should be mandatory reading for anyone in a position of national leadership, today.