History is all around us and in the case of a small corner store in a bustling city, it walks in and out its front door. Oscar Nowicki arrives in the US just before the turn of the century carrying his life in a cardboard suitcase and enough money to pursue his American dream — his very own barbershop. Oscar eventually marries, leaving for a job as a subway conductor. The barbershop becomes a fashionable clothing store in the Roaring Twenties and later turns into a soup kitchen feeding the poor of the Great Depression. Subsequent eras leave their mark on the little storefront, each with a story to tell about the generation living through it. But after a fire eventually sweeps through the little shop, what will become of it? Will it still play a part in fulfilling other American dreams? This story is a beautiful reminder that there is more to the old, venerable buildings still standing in our cities than we realize, and that if walls could talk, they would truly have an abundance of stories to tell.
Oscar’s American Dream was written by Barry Wittenstein, illustrated by Kristen & Kevin Howdeshell and published by Schwartz & Wade Books.