Through the books of Vasily Aksyonov (1932-2009) the representation of the journey to America and the gradual transformation of the idea of America in Russian literature in 1970-1980 will be explored. The perception of America in the Russian imagination has always been ambivalent and has had a complex evolution. During the Cold War and until perestrojka one vision was negative, created by State propaganda; the other, non-official, positive and often fantastic created by American literature, music and cinema. Aksyonov's works belong to this second category. Aksyonov's approach to American society changes in time. "Kruglye sutki non-stop" (1976) is written after his first journey to America and "V poiskah grustnogo bebi" (1987) is written after several years there; essays from the 1980's on the theme of cultural differences are included. The changes in his literary style and language are analyzed as the American dream becomes reality.