Deep within the American Dream lies the belief that hard work and steady saving will ensure a comfortable retirement and a better life for one's children. But in a nation experiencing unprecedented prosperity, even for many families who seem to be doing everything right, this ideal is still out...

The U.S. economy has had 25 years of some of the strongest, smoothest growth in its history--economists have even named it: "the Great Moderation." So why have so many of us arrived at the new century with a gnawing sense that events are moving against our families and ourselves? Drawing on...