Latest version of the title for my literature book is "Great (and Other) Books and the Rise of Toxic Meritocracy."
The parenthetical in the title reflects that some of the books I'll be discussing are definitely not great - although no less interesting for that. E.g., Horatio Alger (Ragged Dick and/or Mark the Match Boy), Ayn Rand (either Atlas Shrugged or The Fountainhead).
Also, to be strictly accurate, not all of the works I'm discussing will be "books," or at least novels. I'm planning to close with The Wolf of Wall Street - truly a prophetic preview of the 2016 election - and may also discuss, not only Death of a Salesman, but also It's a Wonderful Life.
At the risk of making the book too much the hostage of current events, I think the 2016 presidential election, if nothing else, gave me exactly the dramatic arc that I needed. All clouds have a silver lining, I guess.
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