Who feels like helping me find an American piece of literature [be it a short story or novel]?

I highly recommend The Catcher in the Rye and The Great Gatsby, but you could also read something by Toni Morrison (The Bluest Eye). If you like Mark Twain, you could try reading Huck Finn. Anything by Steinbeck (The Gs of Wrath is great, albiet sad). Good luck looking, enjoy the read!