A riveting account of those pursuing the American Dream. -CHOICE Vieira aims to contribute to the social history of literacy with American By Paper, informing pedagogy and practice through a comprehensive consideration of literacy, documents, and bureaucracy in ordinary life. -PoLAR I leave Vieira's book feeling deeply that ours is a crazy system: ... Read moreWhy keep piling documents on top of documents, making of them a wall to the world? Why should migrants-people-have to choose between the time-consuming work of pursuing English or caring for their families? Why make migrant lives any harder than they already are? American by Paper urges us to rethink all that we ask of those who seek a better life. -Catherine Prendergast, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Relentless in its critique of literacy as a social practice and in its effort to develop a counter-narrative, American by Paper forces open a conversation that has been lingering but has not received the kind of attention it deserves. -Juan Guerra, University of Washington Show Less