As soon as it first appeared in 1953, this gem by the great Saul Bellow was hailed as an American classic. Bold, expansive, and keenly humorous, The Adventures of Augie March blends street language with literary elegance to tell the story of a poor Chicago boy growing up during the Great Depression. A â?born recruit,â? Augie makes himself available for hire by plungers, schemers, risk takers, and operators, compiling a record of choices that isâ?to say the leastâ? eccentric.