"God Bless America" author at UNC Charlotte

No, Steve Almond is not the guy who wrote the patriotic song. That was Irving Berlin.

But Almond, a prize-winning essayist and short story writer, has written "God Bless America" (Lookout Books; $17.95), a new story collection by the same name. Almond's publisher, Wilmington's Lookout Books, describes the collection as a meditation on the American Dream and its discontents.

Almond will read and sign books at 6:30 p.m. next Wednesday, Nov. 16, in room 200 of UNC Charlotte's Denny Building.

His previous books include the nonfiction "Candyfreak: A Journey Through the Chocolate Underbelly of America."