Poverty and precarity Books

Book SynopsisThat was the simple yet groundbreaking question William T. Vollmann asked in cities and villages around the globe. The result of Vollmann''s fearless inquiry is a view of poverty unlike any previously offered. Poor People struggles to confront poverty in all its hopelessness and brutality, its pride and abject fear, its fierce misery and quiet resignation, allowing the poor to explain the causes and consequences of their impoverishment in their own cultural, social, and religious terms. With intense compassion and a scrupulously unpatronizing eye, Vollmann invites his readers to recognize in our fellow human beings their full dignity, fallibility, pride, and pain, and the power of their hard-fought resilience.

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Book SynopsisIn Downeast, Gigi Georges follows five girls as they come of age in one of the most challenging and geographically isolated regions on the Eastern seaboard. Their stories reveal surprising truths about rural America and offer hope for its future. “It’s almost impossible not to care about these fierce young women and cheer for their hard-won successes” (Kirkus) in this “heartfelt portrait” and “worthy tribute” (Publishers Weekly).Nestled in Maine’s far northeast corner, Washington County sits an hour’s drive from the heart of famed and bustling Acadia National Park. Yet it’s a world away. For Willow, Vivian, Mckenna, Audrey, and Josie—five teenage girls caught between tradition and transformation in this remote region—it is home. Downeast follows their journeys of heartbreak and hope in uncertain times, creating a nuanced a

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Book SynopsisA study which combines personal reminiscences with careful historical research, the myth of the ''good old days'' is summarily dispensed with; Robert Roberts describes the period of his childhood, when the main affect of poverty in Edwardian Salford was degredation, and, despite great resources of human courage, few could escape such a prison.Table of Contents1 Class Structure2 Possessions3 Manners and Morals4 Governors, Pastors and Masters5 The Common Scene6 Food, Drink and Physic7 Alma Mater8 Culture9 The Great Release10 High Days and AfterAppendices1 Conducted Tour2 Snuffy3 Bronze MushroomsSelect BibliographyIndexIllustrationsThe photographs, which have not been published before, were taken around the early 1900s by a Worsley man, Samuel Coulthurst, who went about Salford dressed as a rag and bone merchant with his camera concealed on a handcart.1. Corner shop2. A muffler–white, if possible, for the Lord's day3. Some were too poor to buy at the old clothes shops4. General dealer5. The clothiers6. Women of the time I7. Women of the time II8. Water for the wheel: a knife and scissors grinder9. Hawkers at rest10. 'The short way out of Manchester'11. A barrel organ called Tuesdays and Saturdays12. Theatre by the market13. Boys haggling at the hen market

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Book SynopsisSendhil Mullainathan, the ''most interesting young economist in the world'', and Eldar Shafir, the ''most brilliant psychologist'' of his generation, explain the hidden problem behind everything with ScarcityWhy can we never seem to keep on top of our workload, social diary or chores? Why does poverty persist around the world? Why do successful people do things at the last minute in a sudden rush of energy? Here, economist Sendhil Mullainathan and psychologist Eldar Shafir reveal that the hidden side behind all these problems is that they''re all about scarcity. Using the new science of scarcity, they explain why obesity is rampant; why people find it difficult to sleep when most sleep deprived; and why the lonely find it so hard to make friends. Scarcity will change the way you think about both the little everyday tasks and the big issues of global urgency.''Stars in their respective disciplines, and the combination is greater than the sum of its parts. Their project has a unique feel to it: it is the finest combination of heart and head that I have seen in our field'' - Daniel Kahneman, author of Thinking, Fast and Slow''Scarcity is a captivating book, overflowing with new ideas, fantastic stories, and simple suggestions that just might change the way you live'' - Steven D. Levitt, coauthor of Freakonomics''An ultimately humane and very welcome book'' - Oliver Burkeman, Guardian Sendhil Mullainathan is a Professor of Economics at Harvard, and a recipient of a MacArthur Foundation genius grant. He conducts research on development economics, behavioural economics, and corporate finance. He is Executive Director of Ideas 42, Institute of Quantitative Social Science, Harvard University.Eldar Shafir is William Stewart Tod Professor of Psychology and Public Affairs at Princeton University. Most of his work focuses on descriptive analyses of inference, judgment, and decision making, and on issues related to behavioural economics.Trade ReviewStars in their respective disciplines, and the combination is greater than the sum of its parts. Their project has a unique feel to it: it is the finest combination of heart and head that I have seen in our field -- Daniel Kahneman, author of 'Thinking, Fast and Slow'Scarcity is a captivating book, overflowing with new ideas, fantastic stories, and simple suggestions that just might change the way you live -- Steven D. Levitt, coauthor of 'Freakonomics'Here is a winning recipe. Take a behavioral economist and a cognitive psychologist, each a prominent leader in his field, and let their creative minds commingle. What you get is a highly original and easily readable book that is full of intriguing insights. What does a single mom trying to make partner at a major law firm have in common with a peasant who spends half her income on interest payments? The answer is scarcity. Read this book to learn the surprising ways in which scarcity affects us all -- Richard Thaler, co-author of 'Nudge'An ultimately humane and very welcome book -- Oliver Burkeman * Guardian *The book's unified theory of the scarcity mentality is novel in its scope and ambition * The Economist *A succinct, digestible and often delightfully witty introduction to an important new branch of economics -- Felix Martin * New Statesman *A pacey dissection of a potentially life-changing subject * Time Out *

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Book SynopsisGeorge Orwell's searing account of working-class life in the bleak industrial heartlands of Yorkshire and Lancashire in the 1930s, The Road to Wigan Pier is a brilliant and bitter polemic that has lost none of its political impact over timeOrwell's graphically unforgettable descriptions of social injustice, cramped slum housing, dangerous mining conditions, squalor, hunger and growing unemployment are written with unblinking honesty, fury and great humanity. It crystallized the ideas that would be found in his later works and novels, and remains a powerful portrait of poverty, injustice and class divisions in Britain.Includes illustrations, explanatory footnotes, and an introduction by Richard Hoggart

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Book SynopsisGeorge Orwell''s vivid memoir of his time living among the desperately poor and destitute, Down and Out in Paris and London is a moving tour of the underworld of society.''You have talked so often of going to the dogs - and well, here are the dogs, and you have reached them.'' Written when Orwell was a struggling writer in his twenties, it documents his ''first contact with poverty''. Here, he painstakingly documents a world of unrelenting drudgery and squalor - sleeping in bug-infested hostels and doss houses of last resort, working as a dishwasher in Paris''s vile ''Hôtel X'', surviving on scraps and cigarette butts, living alongside tramps, a star-gazing pavement artist and a starving Russian ex-army captain. Exposing a shocking, previously-hidden world to his readers, Orwell gave a human face to the statistics of poverty for the first time - and in doing so, found his voice as a writer.Trade ReviewThe white-hot reaction of a sensitive, observant, compassionate young man to poverty -- Dervla MurphyOrwell was the great moral force of his age * Spectator *

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Book SynopsisA searing account of George Orwell''s observations of working-class life in the bleak industrial heartlands of Yorkshire and Lancashire in the 1930s, The Road to Wigan Pier is a brilliant and bitter polemic that has lost none of its political impact over time. His graphically unforgettable descriptions of social injustice, cramped slum housing, dangerous mining conditions, squalor, hunger and growing unemployment are written with unblinking honesty, fury and great humanity. It crystallized the ideas that would be found in Orwell''s later works and novels, and remains a powerful portrait of poverty, injustice and class divisions in Britain.Published with an introduction by Richard Hoggart in Penguin Modern Classics.''It is easy to see why the book created and still creates so sharp an impact ... exceptional immediacy, freshness and vigour, opinionated and bold ... Above all, it is a study of poverty and, behind that, of the strength of class-divisTrade ReviewTrue genius ... all his anger and frustration found their first proper means of expression in Wigan Pier -- Peter Ackroyd * The Times *

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Book Synopsis*WINNER OF THE 2017 PULITZER PRIZE FOR NON-FICTION* ''Beautifully written, thought-provoking, and unforgettable ... If you want a good understanding of how the issues that cause poverty are intertwined, you should read this book'' Bill Gates, Best Books of 2017Arleen spends nearly all her money on rent but is kicked out with her kids in Milwaukee''s coldest winter for years. Doreen''s home is so filthy her family call it ''the rat hole''. Lamar, a wheelchair-bound ex-soldier, tries to work his way out of debt for his boys. Scott, a nurse turned addict, lives in a gutted-out trailer. This is their world. And this is the twenty-first century: where fewer and fewer people can afford a simple roof over their head.''Essential. A compelling and damning exploration of the abuse of one of our basic human rights: shelter.'' Owen Jones''If I could require the president to read one book it would be Evicted'' Zadie SmithTrade ReviewAn intimate portrait of what it's like to be powerless in the world's superpower ... Evicted shows how the smallest event can rip through poor lives, sending them spinning out of control... To British eyes, the narrative reads like a dispatch from the near-future. -- Aditya Chakrabortty * Guardian *For the two or three weeks I was reading the book, it formed my topic of conversation with friends, and at night, when I went to sleep, it filled my thoughts ... It makes you aware of how complicated the webs holding you up are. -- Benjamin Markovits * New Statesman *A monumental and vivid study of urban poverty ... Evicted demands attention. It shines a klieg light on a dark corner of the American experience -- Ed Caesar * Sunday Times *Heartbreaking... Desmond's acute observational skills, his facility with reported dialogue and his ability to wrench chaotic stories into clear prose make Evicted a vivid, if sometimes gruelling, read... with UK house prices unaffordable, a dearth of council housing and a Government committed to austerity, Evicted serves as a warning as to what happens when a society refuses to recognise the fundamental human right to shelter -- Keith Kahn-Harris * Independent *A remarkable ethnography ... [Desmond] has a novelist's eye for the telling detail and a keen ear for dialogue ... This is a significant literary achievement, as well as a feat of reporting underpinned by statistical labour -- Jonathan Derbyshire * Financial Times *Astonishing ... Desmond has set a new standard for reporting on poverty -- Barbara Ehrenreich * Herald *An extraordinary ethnographic study... Desmond takes people who are usually seen as worthless, and shows us their full humanity ... By examining one city through the microscopic lens of housing, he shows us how the system that produces that pain and poverty was created and is maintained -- Katha Pollitt * Guardian *

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Book SynopsisTHE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERA PROSPECT BOOK OF THE YEAR''I couldn''t put it down. . . an important book, raw and simple enough that you can''t help but feel it deeply'' James Rebanks, author of The Shepherd''s LifeTalented and ambitious, Monica Potts and her best friend, Darci, were both determined to make something of themselves. How did their lives turn out so different? Growing up gifted and working-class in the foothills of the Ozarks, Monica and Darci became fast friends. Bonding over a shared love of learning, they pored over the giant map in their classroom, tracing their fingers over the world that awaited them, vowing to escape their broken town. In the end, Monica left Clinton for university and fulfilled her dreams. Darci, along with many in their circle of friends, did not. Years later, working as a journalist covering poverty, Monica discovers what she already intuitively knew about the

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Book SynopsisWINNER OF THE FORWARD PRIZE FOR BEST FIRST COLLECTIONChosen as a Book of the Year by New Statesman, Financial Times, Guardian, Observer, Rough Trade and the BBCShortlisted for the Rathbones Folio PrizeLonglisted for the Jhalak Prize''Restlessly inventive, brutally graceful, startlingly beautiful ... a landmark debut'' Guardian''Oh my God, he''s just stirring me. Destroying me'' Michaela Coel''A poet of truth and rage, heartbreak and joy'' Max Porter''Takes us into new literary territory ... impressive'' Bernardine Evaristo, New Statesman (Books of the Year)''It''s simply stunning. Every image is a revelation'' Terrance HayesWhat is it like to grow up in a place where the same police officer who told your primary school class they were special stops and searches you at 13 because ''you fit the description of a man'' - and where it is possiTrade ReviewTakes us into new literary territory ... impressive -- Bernardine Evaristo * New Statesman (Books of the Year) *It's rare for a book of poems to repeatedly leave you breathless when reading it. Such is the urgent brilliance of Caleb Femi's Poor . . . Femi's language is restlessly inventive, unerring in uncovering images that lodge in your memory. His use of concrete as a recurring motif is brutally graceful, encapsulating this startlingly beautiful book, a landmark debut for British poetry -- Rishi Dastidar * Guardian *I am reading a powerful book of poetry by a young man, Caleb Femi. Oh my God, he has a book called Poor and he's just stirring me. Destroying me. I look up to him as a poet -- Michaela CoelCaleb Femi is a gift to us all from the storytelling gods. He is a poet of truth and rage, heartbreak and joy. But above all, this is love poetry. Love of community, language, music and form. This book flows from the fabric of boyhood to the politics and architecture of agony, from the material to the spiritual, always moving, always real. Poor is the heartbeat of a living city which truly knows itself. Caleb is a mighty and positive force in UK culture and this is a vital book -- Max Porter, author of LannyIn this fabulous debut, concrete becomes a paradox of toughness and vulnerability, confinement and shelter . . . Caleb Femi's riveting photographs and compassionate yet hard-hitting lines map North Peckham's black boys and blocks . . . His depictions of young black men possess a brother's empathy . . . It's simply stunning. Every image is a revelation -- Terrance Hayes, author of American Sonnets for My Past and Future AssassinMesmerizing and transporting. I've never read a collection like this . . . I literally had to shake off the experience once I was finished. [This] incredible collection . . . gives voice to a London many would prefer to ignore . . . I don't think it possible for anyone to come away from this book without having developed new levels of empathy and compassion -- Derek Owusu, author of That Reminds MeImpressive . . . At the heart of the collection is the poet's deconstruction of language, fusing biblical cadence with a contemporary street vernacular. There is something reminiscent of William Blake's visionary poetic in Femi's commitment to a realistic worship for places like Aylesbury Estate and North Peckham, as well as their communities . . . [recalls] Gwendolyn Brooks's and Nate Marshall's odes to Chicago . . . [Poor is] in conversation with Roger Robinson's and Jay Bernard's poems of witness and poetic gospel, which . . . create myths, legends, and folklore that render black bodies as holy -- Malika Booker, author of Pepper SeedCaleb Femi's Poor bristles with the exhilarations and violences of boyhood and adolescence. In its interplay of image and text, of photographic image and poetic image, the book asks us to consider what is seen and unseen, spoken of and concealed; what is, in one of many numinous phrases, "proof of light". More than this, these are poems of witness, both noun and verb: poems of the self and what the self can bear -- Stephen Sexton, author of If All the World and Love Were YoungGiving a mythic resonance to communal life, the poems in Caleb Femi's Poor are vital, confronting and electric. Political, spiritual, formally inventive and energized by a music of protest and grief, this is a rare and anthemic debut -- Seán Hewitt, author of Tongues of FireAn urban romantic . . . powerful * Dazed & Confused *Caleb's talent calls for a global stage -- Virgil Abloh

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Book SynopsisA TELEGRAPH AND IRISH TIMES BOOK OF THE YEARLONGLISTED FOR THE POLARI FIRST BOOK PRIZE SHORTLISTED FOR THE FORWARD PRIZE FOR BEST FIRST COLLECTIONSHORTLISTED FOR THE JOHN POLLARD FOUNDATION INTERNATIONAL POETRY PRIZE ''Impressive . . . tender, unflinching'' Guardian''This is poetry in the grand tradition of annihiliation by desire. It''s what the young are always learning, and the old, if they are wise, never forget'' Anne Boyer, author of The Undying''Brilliant . . . heralds the arrival of a frank and vital poetic voice'' Sharlene Teo, author of Ponti''Frank and alert . . . an important voice in British poetry'' Eley Williams, author of The Liar''s Dictionary''Direct and heart-breaking'' Alex Dimitrov, author of Love and Other Poems''A rare thing . . . razor-sharp'' Julia Copus, author of This Rare Spirit: A Life of Charlotte MewIn Rotten Days in Late Summer, Ralf Webb turns poetry to an examination of the textures of class, youth, adulthood and death in the working communities of the West Country, from mobile home parks, boyish factory workers and saleswomen kept on the road for days at a time, to the yearnings of young love and the complexities of masculinity.Alongside individual poems, three sequences predominate: a series of ''Love Stories'', charting a course through the dreams, lies and salt-baked limbs of multiple relationships; ''Diagnostics'', which tells the story of the death from cancer of the poet''s father; and ''Treetops'', a virtuosic long poem weaving together grief and mental health struggles in an attempt to come to terms with the overwhelming data of a life.The world of these poems is close, dangerous, lustrous and difficult: a world in which whole existences are lived in the spin of almost-inescapable fates. In searching for the light within it, this prodigious debut collection announces the arrival of a major new voice in British poetry.Trade ReviewIt's a rare thing to come across a debut collection as cohesive and accomplished as Rotten Days in Late Summer. Whether writing on love, class, illness, the working life, death or the complex and multi-faceted nature of human desire, Ralf Webb is never less than razor-sharp. With a storyteller's flair, he evokes a world of shifting terrains in which 'anything could be an omen', and where refrains, motifs, stanza shapes and rhymes call to each other across the pages. In his extraordinary 'Treetops' sequence, Webb navigates the labyrinths of mental illness and the ambiguous prize of health . . . It all feels gloriously, anarchically new -- Julia CopusThis is close-range language, magnifying without prejudice both the beautiful and the hard. Ralf Webb's poetry tells the truth of the push-pull of liberation and obligation . . . To work, to care, to mourn, but also to be a poet and queer and . . . dream of a commune in France - this is poetry in the grand tradition of annihilation by desire. It's what the young are always learning, and the old, if they are wise, never forget -- Anne BoyerHis poems take on grief and young manhood, and are largely set in England's West Country. 'Accept this cheap and ironclad cynicism,' Webb writes. 'We're not famous. I am completely in love.' The voice in this book is direct and heart-breaking. There's no pretension. It's all heart -- Alex Dimitrov * Oprah Daily *Webb's collection concerns captivation and captivity, its dignities and its violences, with frank and alert complexity. Be it in remembered school corridors, the careening horizons of grief or longed-for resolutions within and without desire, he presents the strange within the recognisable and the recognisable within the strange. A careful-bold, important voice in British poetry -- Eley WilliamsRalf Webb is an ethnographer of the present. He is interested in everyday life in the extreme. What we find is that "There is a goodness here, somewhere, there is sense in struggle." Equal parts ode, litany, and menace, Rotten Days in Late Summer opens us up to the agon of the new century -- Peter Gizzi

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Book SynopsisThirty-six major contemporary writers examine life in a deeply divided America—including Anthony Doerr, Ann Patchett, Roxane Gay, Rebecca Solnit, Hector Tobar, Joyce Carol Oates, Edwidge Danticat, Richard Russo, Eula Bliss, Karen Russell, and many more                   America is broken. You don’t need a fistful of statistics to know this. Visit any city, and evidence of our shattered social compact will present itself. From Appalachia to the Rust Belt and down to rural Texas, the gap between the wealthiest and the poorest stretches to unimaginable chasms. Whether the cause of this inequality is systemic injustice, the entrenchment of racism in our culture, the long war on drugs, or immigration policies, it endangers not only the American Dream but our very lives. In Tales of Two Americas, some of the literary world’s most exciting writers

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Book SynopsisThe paradox of poverty amidst plenty has plagued the United States throughout the 21st century - why should the wealthiest country in the world also have the highest rates of poverty among the industrialized nations? Based on his decades-long research and scholarship, one of the nation''s leading authorities provides the answer. In The Poverty Paradox, Mark Robert Rank develops his unique perspective for understanding this puzzle. The approach is what he has defined over the years as structural vulnerability. Central to this new way of thinking is the distinction between those who lose out at the economic game versus why the game produces losers in the first place. Americans experiencing poverty tend to have certain characteristics placing them at a greater risk of impoverishment. Yet poverty results not from these factors, but rather from a lack of sufficient opportunities in society. In particular, the shortage of decent paying jobs and a strong safety net are paramount. Based upon this understanding, Rank goes on to detail a variety of strategies and programs to effectively alleviate poverty in the future. Implementing these policies has the added benefit of reinforcing several of the nation''s most important values and principles. The Poverty Paradox represents a game changing examination of poverty and inequality. It provides the essential blueprint for finally combatting this economic injustice in the years ahead.Trade ReviewMark Robert Rank's ambitious book, The Poverty Paradox, is said to be "a game changing examination of poverty and inequality. It provides the essential blueprint for finally combatting this economic injustice in the years ahead". * Craig R. Roach, New York Journal of Books *Mark Rank, one of America's great poverty scholars, has done it again. In crystal clear prose, The Poverty Paradox walks readers through what we know about poverty in the United States, forwards a framework to understand why it persists, and offers evidence-strategies for how we can confront it. It will offer fresh insights to new students, long-time experts, and policymakers alike. * H. Luke Shaefer, Hermann and Amalie Kohn Professor of Social Justice and Social Policy at the Ford School of Public Policy, University of Michigan *After reading Rank, Christians might decide that their vested interests should be in structures that alleviate wealth as much as those that alleviate poverty. * Adam Vander Tuig, The Christian Century *Recommended. Undergraduates through faculty; professionals; general readers. * Choice *Table of ContentsPart I: Overview Chapter 1: Introduction Chapter 2: Defining, Measuring, and Counting Chapter 3: The Traditional Perspective Part II: The Structural Vulnerability Framework Chapter 4: Economic Vulnerability and the Role of Human Capital Chapter 5: Cumulative Inequality Chapter 6: Two Levels of Understanding Part III: The Broader Context Chapter 7: Building the Foundation Chapter 8: Policy Implications Chapter 9: Looking Back, Looking Ahead Notes

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Book SynopsisWhile there is no denying that the world has made huge progress against absolute poverty over the last 200 years, until recent times the bulk of that progress had been made in wealthy countries only. The good news is that we have seen greater progress against poverty in the developing world in recent times-indeed, a faster pace of progress against extreme poverty than the rich world saw over a period of 100 years or more of economic development. However, continuing progress is far from assured. High and rising inequality has stalled progress against poverty in many countries. We are seeing generally rising relative poverty in the rich world as a whole over recent decades. And even in the developing world, there has been less progress in reaching the poorest, who risk being left behind, and a great many people in the emerging middle class remain highly vulnerable to falling back into poverty.The Economics of Poverty strives to support well-informed efforts to put in place effective policies to assure continuing success in reducing poverty in all its dimensions. The book reviews critically the past and present debates on the central policy issues of economic development everywhere. How much poverty is there? Why does poverty exist? What can be done to eliminate poverty? Martin Ravallion provides an accessible new synthesis of current knowledge on these issues. It does not assume that readers know economics already. Those new to economics get a lot of help along the way in understanding its concepts and methods. Economics lives though its relevance to real world problems, and here the problem of global poverty is both the central focus and a vehicle for learning.Trade Review"Many economics students are motivated by the struggle for a better world. Here, at last, is the book for them. Building on extensive research, Ravallion asks: What can we learn about poverty from past thinkers? How should we measure poverty? What reduces it? Readers don't need prior knowledge of economics: this clear, rigorous text teaches the economic basics, not as a chore, but as part of learning what's wrong and how to put it right." -- Michael Lipton, Research Professor of Economics, University of Sussex "This book is a tour de force. Covering history of thought, analytical tools and policy issues, it provides an indispensable introduction to the economics of poverty. Martin Ravallion is a global leader in the field of poverty analysis. His book will prove to be of lasting value not only to students, but also to seasoned researchers and policy analysts." -- Ravi Kanbur, T.H. Lee Professor of World Affairs and Professor of Economics, Cornell University "This landmark book demonstrates clearly and convincingly the power of economic ideas and analysis in tackling the blight of global poverty and provides the perfect grounding-rigorous yet inspirational-for young scholars seeking to help the world's poorest." -- Lyn Squire, Director of the World Bank's 1990 World Development Report, Poverty "For the first time in history, we have the knowledge and tools to end extreme poverty. Dr. Ravallion's insightful and practical analysis provides a blueprint for the next generation of leaders to seize this opportunity and build vibrant, inclusive economies." -- Rajiv Shah, Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) "An indispensable reference for anyone interested in any aspect of the economics of poverty by the indisputable world expert in this area." -- François Bourguignon, Paris School of EconomicsTable of ContentsPART 1: HISTORY OF THOUGHT ; Chapter 1: Origins of the Idea of a World Free of Poverty ; Chapter 2: New Thinking on Poverty after 1950 ; PART 2: MEASURES AND METHODS ; Chapter 3: Measuring Welfare ; Chapter 4: Poverty Lines ; Chapter 5: Poverty and Inequality Measures ; Chapter 6: Impact Evaluation ; PART 3: POVERTY AND POLICY ; Chapter 7: Dimensions of Poverty and Inequality in the World ; Chapter 8: Growth, Inequality and Poverty ; Chapter 9: Economy-Wide and Sectoral Policies ; Chapter 10: Targeted Interventions ; Conclusions: Past Progress and Future Challenges

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Book SynopsisThe United States of America is experiencing a housing crisis, which, by some estimates, started in the early 2000s and was made worse by the financial crisis of the 2007-2008 recession. Hundreds of thousands of Americans lack decent and affordable housing or everyday shelter. Instead, they must live in tent encampments stowed in the niches of neighborhoods and under the freeway overpasses of many major U.S. cities, often in unsafe conditions. Signs of this crisis are all around: in the spikes of evictions, in nationwide problems with over- and under-development, and in the growing concerns about the sustainability of this nation''s towns and cities in the face of global climate change. This crisis didn''t arise from the specific circumstances of the housing market or shortfalls in the construction of new homes or increased labor and material costs. The current housing crisis is the result of state-sponsored discrimination in housing and land-use policy and the enforcement of racial anTable of ContentsIntroduction Acknowledgements Chapter 1: Justice and Social Spatial Arrangements 1.1 Introduction 1.2 Spatial Justice 1.3 Equality and Social Spatial Arrangements 1.4 Distributive Justice Chapter 2: Open Cities and Reconstructive Justice 2.1 Introduction 2.2 Reaching for Transformation 2.3 Open Communities and Substantive Opportunity 2.4 Rectifying Enduring Injustice Chapter 3: The Trouble with Gentrification 3.1 Bad Techies 3.2 The Concept of Gentrification 3.3 Two or Three Cheers for Gentrification 3.4 Here's the Thing about Displacement 3.5 Harms and Inequality Chapter 4: The Harms of Gentrification 4.1 The Harms 4.2 Distributive Justice 4.3 Cultural Loss 4.4 Democratic Inequality 4.5 Pragmatic Rectification Chapter 5: Segregation and the Trouble with Integration 5.1 Know Your Place 5.2 The Concept of Social-Spatial Segregation 5.3 The Benefits of Segregation 5.4 The Harms of Segregation 5.5 Integration as Evenness and Mobility 5.6 Integration is not a Proxy for Justice Chapter 6: Reconstructing Integration 6.1 What Remains of Integration 6.2 Integration as Reconstruction 6.3 Outcomes, not Conversion Chapter 7: Conclusion 7. Discomfiting Justice Bibliography

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Book SynopsisUnderstanding poverty and what to do about it, is perhaps the central concern of all of economics. Yet the lay public almost never gets to hear what leading professional economists have to say about it. This volume brings together twenty-eight essays by some of the world leaders in the field, who were invited to tell the lay reader about the most important things they have learnt from their research that relate to poverty. The essays cover a wide array of topics: the first essay is about how poverty gets measured. The next section is about the causes of poverty and its persistence, and the ideas range from the impact of colonialism and globalization to the problems of excessive population growth, corruption and ethnic conflict. The next section is about policy: how should we fight poverty? The essays discuss how to get drug companies to produce more vaccines for the diseases of the poor, what we should and should not expect from micro-credit, what we should do about child labor, how toTrade ReviewA serious examination of where we stand and what we need to do. * Nicholas Kristof, The New York Review of Books *Mass poverty is mankind's oldest, yet still most pressing, problem. Understanding Poverty describes the attack that economists are making to understand it on many different fronts. Every reader of the essays in this superb volume will appreciate the currrent excitement of development economics and the enormous progress it has made in the last two decades. * George Akerlof, Nobel Laureate in Economics, 2001 *Table of ContentsAbhijit Vinayak Banerjee, Roland Bénabou and Dilip Mookherjee: Introduction 1: Angus Deaton: Measuring Poverty PART I: The Causes of Poverty 2: Daron Acemoglu, Simon Johnson, & James Robinson: Understanding Prosperity and Poverty: Geography, Institutions, and the Reversal of Fortune 3: Stanley L. Engerman & Kenneth L. Sokoloff: Colonialism, Inequality, And Long-Run Paths Of Development 4: Thomas Piketty: The Kuznets Curve: Yesterday and Tomorrow 5: Philippe Aghion & Beatriz Armendàriz de Aghion: A New Growth Approach to Poverty Alleviation 6: Abhijit Vinayak Banerjee: Globalization and All That 7: Pranab Bardhan: The Global Economy and the Poor 8: Mukesh Eswaran & Ashok Kotwal: The Role of Agriculture in Development 9: T. Paul Schultz: Fertility and Income 10: Mukesh Eswaran: Fertility in Developing Countries 11: Jean-Jacques Laffont: Corruption and Development 12: Edward Miguel: Ethnic Diversity and Poverty Reduction PART II: How Should We Go About Fighting Poverty? 13: Emmanuel Saez: Redistribution toward Low Incomes in Richer Countries 14: Martin Ravallion: Transfers and Safety Nets in Poor Countries: Revisiting the Trade-Offs and Policy Options 15: Dilip Mookherjee: Poverty Persistence and Design of Antipoverty Policies 16: Christopher Udry: Child Labor 17: Kaushik Basu: Policy Dilemmas for Controlling Child Labor 18: Anne Case: The Primacy of Education 19: Timothy Besley & Maitreesh Ghatak: Public Goods and Economic Development 20: Jean Tirole: Intellectual Property and Health in Developing Countries 21: Michael Kremer: Public Policies to Stimulate Development of Vaccines for Neglected Diseases 22: Jonathan Morduch: Microinsurance: The Next Revolution? 23: Robert M. Townsend: 23) Credit, Intermediation, and Poverty Reduction PART III: New Ways of Thinking About Poverty 24: Esther Duflo: Poor but Rational? 25: Sendhil Mullainathan: Better Choices to Reduce Poverty 26: Kaivan Munshi: Nonmarket Institutions 27: Glenn C. Loury: Racial Stigma: Toward a New Paradigm for Discrimination Theory 28: Debraj Ray: Aspirations, Poverty and Economic Change

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Book SynopsisPoverty is not simply the result of an individual''s characteristics, behaviors or abilities. Rather, as David Brady demonstrates, poverty is the result of politics. In Rich Democracies, Poor People, Brady investigates why poverty is so entrenched in some affluent democracies whereas it is a solvable problem in others. Drawing on over thirty years of data from eighteen countries, Brady argues that cross-national and historical variations in poverty are principally driven by differences in the generosity of the welfare state. An explicit challenge to mainstream views of poverty as an inescapable outcome of individual failings or a society''s labor markets and demography, this book offers institutionalized power relations theory as an alternative explanation. The power of coalitions for egalitarianism, Leftist political groups and parties, and the social policies they are able to institutionalize shape the amount of poverty in society. Where poverty is low, equality has been institutionaTrade Reviewan ambitious, impressively well-argued and long-overdue contribution to the poverty debate. * Fiona Taylor, The Times Higher Education Supplement *Table of ContentsAPPENDIX; ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS; REFERENCES

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewThe Rebitzers explore an overlooked feature of our healthcare system: it is too easy to profit from low-value innovations and too hard for cost-reducing innovations to find a buyer. The book is full of engaging examples and policy ideas. Anyone who cares about innovation in healthcare and wants to make things better should read it. * David Cutler, Otto Eckstein Professor of Applied Economics, Harvard University *In Why Not Better and Cheaper?, James and Robert Rebitzer elegantly explain the misaligned incentives in American healthcare and how to fix them. This is a must-read for anyone looking to make healthcare better and cheaper. * Bob Kocher, Partner at Venrock, and Former Special Assistant to President Obama for Healthcare and Economic Policy *The book does not disappoint—it is a masterclass in medicine, law, economics, strategy, and psychology—infused with clever facts and written with a steadfast determination to make the reader smarter about taking health care, which is so doggedly frustrating and expensive, and innovating to make it better and cheaper. * Amitabh Chandra, Ethel Zimmerman Wiener Professor, Harvard Kennedy School of Government *At last, a book that explains why a country with extraordinary innovative capacity has a wildly expensive and underperforming healthcare sector—and it's not just the prices! The Brothers Rebitzer use fascinating examples to pinpoint the perverse incentives driving low-value innovation in the U.S. healthcare sector and to show what can be done to can set them right. * Leemore Dafny, Bruce V. Rauner Professor of Business Administration, Harvard Business School *This is a most welcome and important work on U.S. healthcare. Two brothers, Jim and Bob Rebitzer, one an economist and one a business consultant, combine their unique perspectives to give us fresh and deep insights into why healthcare innovation in the U.S. is the way it is and what we can do about it. * Martin Gaynor, E.J. Barone University Professor of Economics and Public Policy, Carnegie Mellon University *The promise of innovation is to provide better technologies at lower cost. But in healthcare markets, we often observe that ideas for potential cost-reducing innovations fail to take root and never diffuse to benefit patients. In this fantastic book, Jim and Bob Rebitzer provide a compelling diagnosis of this problem and lay out a road map for how to fix it. * Heidi Williams, Charles R. Schwab Professor of Economics, Stanford University *A compelling analysis of a question that has long puzzled experts: why innovation does not reliably increase value in healthcare. Combining insights from economics with close inspection of the institutional features of the healthcare system, Why Not Better and Cheaper? shines new light on this health policy conundrum. A must-read for all who want to improve the American health system. * Meredith Rosenthal, Boyden Gray Professor of Health Economics and Policy, T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University *Why Not Better and Cheaper?, shines a light on the remarkable anomaly that, unlike any other industry, innovation and value creation are often opposites in healthcare. The Rebitzers demonstrate this in fascinating and tangible ways, pointing out that meaningful advancements often struggle to see the light of day. An essential read for anyone in healthcare. * Lisa Suennan, Venture capitalist and serial entrepreneur *In a highly readable way, the Rebitzers do a masterful job of synthesizing a vast amount of theory and practice to answer an important question: why we don't have cost reducing innovation in healthcare. The answer lies in the incentives, norms, and competitive structure of our complex, pluralistic, and highly profitable health system. They dissect the problem carefully and compellingly and offer cogent policy suggestions about how to get more healthcare and health for the money we spend. But even these innovations may not be enough to alter the course of a multi trillion dollar 'Pimp My Ride' health system. * Ian Morrison, Author, Consultant, Futurist *Jim and Bob Rebitzer present a compelling analysis about the sources of dysfunction in the American healthcare system. They combine a broad understanding of economics with deep knowledge of healthcare to explain why important innovations often have trouble spreading widely, while marginal ones can proliferate at ruinous prices. And their recommendations, involving incentives, creative application of professional norms, and thoughtfully-regulated competition, offer a useful and optimistic path forward. * Mark Smith, M.D., Founding President and CEO of the California Healthcare Foundation *A concise book with nuggets of insight missing from the conventional economics literature... the Rebitzers have focused correctly on the 'win-win' potential for cost-saving innovation in US health care. This book doesn't provide solutions to many serious problems in US health care, such as the shocking lack of reliable insurance coverage. But by pointing us in the right direction for policy reforms, whether through simplified patent legislation or novel market based incentives to reward the development of new drug-resistant antibiotics, the authors provide a valuable roadmap for making US health care better and cheaper. * Jonathan Skinner, Journal of Economic Literature *Table of ContentsChapter 1: Introduction and Overview Chapter 2: Economically Valuable Innovation Chapter 3: Missing Innovations Chapter 4: Shared Savings Chapter 5: Beyond Financial Incentives Chapter 6: Competition, Innovation, and Disruption Chapter 7: Dilemmas and Opportunities Appendix 1: Does Innovation Respond to Expected Profits? Appendix 2: Incentives Leading to Overlooked Innovations Outside of Healthcare Acknowledgments References Index

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Book SynopsisAn examination of the ways that digital technologies play an increasingly important role in the lives of precarious workers, far beyond the gig economy apps like Uber and Lyft.Over the past three decades, digital technologies like smartphones and laptops have transformed the way we work in the US. At the same time, workers at both ends of the income ladder have experienced rising levels of job insecurity and anxiety about their economic futures. In Left to Our Own Devices, Julia Ticona explores the ways that workers use their digital technologies to navigate insecure and flexible labor markets. Through 100 interviews with high and low-wage precarious workers across the US, she explores the surprisingly similar digital hustles they use to find work and maintain a sense of dignity and identity. Ticona then reveals how the digital hustle ultimately reproduces inequalities between workers at either end of polarized labor markets. A moving and accessible look at the intimate consequences ofTrade Review...this book contains an excellent and detailed methodological appendix, making it particularly useful to readers who focus on labor or qualitative social science research. * W. Kramer, Cornell University, CHOICE *This is a rare book about media technology that puts people first. Through its stirring prose we see how real people manage data and connectivity in their lives. We get a better sense of the consequences and opportunities of widespread dependence on phones and apps. * Siva Vaidhyanathan, author of Antisocial Media *Through the experiences of both low and high-wage workers trying to hustle in today's economy, Left to Our Own Devices brilliantly resists political logics that presume tech is a luxury. Ticona's compelling ethnographic account of workers' lives is an essential read for understanding modern precarity. * danah boyd, author of It's Complicated: The Social Lives of Networked Teens *This eminently readable, impressive book, based on outstanding fieldwork with precarious workers, deserves to be widely read. Julia Ticona provides a lucid and nuanced account of how such work requires the 'digital hustle' as technologies are not only essential tools in piecing together paid gigs but are also integral to insecure workers' sense of dignity. * Judy Wajcman, London School of Economics *Left to Our Own Devices is an important look into the digital divide at work and the 'hidden similarities and uncomfortable differences' of economic class. Ticona's sharp analysis teaches readers about the painful realities of both high- and low-wage workers being left to navigate precarious jobs with the tools and tech that they have at hand. The result is a book that shows the future of work, today: a logic fuelled by society's worst stereotypes when, as this book argues, our economic futures are tied tightly together. * Gina Neff, University of Cambridge and author of Venture Labor *Left to Our Own Devices will, no doubt, become a groundbreaking book for several disciplinary conversations around the future of work. Drawing on hundreds of interviews of independent workers, beyond the world of ridesharing apps that, otherwise, dominate press and scholarly conversations, Ticona, instead, offers a rare line-of-site into the lives of people picking up algorithmically managed jobs and how they negotiate privacy and the social boundaries between work and home. Her thinking and writing on the nexus of power she analyzes is nothing less than sublime, crafting a new, much needed path of inquiry. * Mary L. Gray, coauthor of Ghost Work: How to Stop Silicon Valley from Building a New Global Underclass and Senior Principal Researcher at Microsoft Research *Left to Our Own Devices is a highly accessible and thought-provoking book that sits nicely alongside other recent contributions that unfold socio-digital inequalities through a meso-level or middle-range theorization...This book therefore paves the way for future research on comparative labor, technology, and inequality studies in variegated socio-economic contexts, as well as cross-national juxtapositions that are still relatively underexplored in the literature. It is undoubtedly a relevant material for anyone interested in socio-digital inequalities, 'the present' of work, as well as the possible future of work life with dignity, autonomy, and self-worth. * Hiu Fung Chung, International Journal of Research into New Media Technologies *Table of ContentsIntroduction Ch. 1 The Digital Hustle Ch. 2 After Access Ch. 3 Comparative Advantages Ch. 4 Suspending the Hustle Conclusion: Beyond Inclusion Methodological Appendix Reference

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Book SynopsisNo one wants to live in poverty. Few people would want others to do so. Yet, millions of people worldwide live in poverty. According to the World Bank, over 700 million people lived on less than US $2 a day in 2013. Why is that? What has been done about it in the past? And what is being done about it now?In this Very Short Introduction Philip N. Jefferson explores how the answers to these questions lie in the social, political, economic, educational, and technological processes that impact all of us throughout our lives. The degree of vulnerability is all that differentiates us. He shows how a person''s level of vulnerability to adverse changes in their life is very much dependent on the circumstances of their birth, including where their family lived, the schools they attended, whether it was peacetime or wartime, whether they had access to clean water, and whether they are male or female. Arguing that whilst poverty is ancient and enduring, the conversation about it is always new and evolving, Jefferson looks at the history of poverty, and the practical and analytical efforts we have made to eradicate it, and the prospects for further poverty alleviation in the future.ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.Table of ContentsCODA: POLITICAL ECONOMY; REFERENCES; FURTHER READING; INDEX

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Book SynopsisHow much are we morally required to do to help people who are much worse off than us? On any credible moral outlook, other people''s pressing need for assistance can ground moral requirements on us to help them---requirements of beneficence. How far do those requirements extend?One way to think about this is by means of a simple analogy: an analogy between joining in efforts to help people at a distance and rescuing a needy person yourself, directly. Part I of Garrett Cullity''s book examines this analogy. In some ways, the analogy is not only simple, but politically and metaphysically simplistic. However, it contains an important truth: we are morally required to help other people, indirectly as well as directly. But the number of needy people in the world is enormous, and their need is very great. Once we start to recognize requirements to help them, when is it morally acceptable to stop? Cullity answers this question in Part II. Examining the nature of beneficence, he argues that itTrade ReviewReview from previous edition How much money and time does morality oblige the relatively affluent to devote to the relief of poverty, suffering, and other disadvantages? Anyone who finds this question remotely important should read Garrett Cullity's meticulous, even-handed treatment. The publication of this monograph signals the continuing emergence of a normative orientation that one might call "beneficence theory". . . . Many philosophers are attracted to the arguments which Cullity . . . dismantles. They will learn from him. By treating well-chosen opposing views so carefully and thoroughly, the book also rewards those who reject the author's ultimate conclusions. . . . the book offers something for nearly everyone. . . . the chapters are well-organized and clearly written. An advanced undergraduate with an ethics background should be able to follow them, and will gain a sophisticated overview of this vital area. * Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews *Cullity has presented us with a thorough, detailed, and serious argument ... an important contribution to the discussion of this issue. * James R. Otteson, Journal of Value Inquiry *Table of Contents1. The Life-Saving Analogy ; 2. An Argument from Beneficence ; 3. Objections to Aid ; 4. Saving Lives ; 5. The Extreme Demand ; 6. Problems of Demandingness ; 7. Impartiality, Fairness, and Beneficence ; 8. The Rejection of the Extreme Demand ; 9. Permission ; 10. Requirement ; 11. Overview ; Appendix 1: Poverty and Aid ; Appendix 2: The Cost of Saving a Life

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Book SynopsisThe issues surrounding poverty and inequality continue to be of central concern to academics, politicians and policy makers but the ways in which we seek to study and understand them continue to change over time. This accessible book seeks to provide a guide to some of the new approaches that have been developed in the light of international initiatives to reduce poverty and the notable changes in income inequality and poverty that have occurred across many western countries in recent years. These new approaches have to some degree been facilitated by the emergence of new techniques and a growing availability of data that enable cross national comparisons not only of income but also of measures of welfare such as educational achievement, nutritional status in developing countries and wealth and deprivation indicators in the developed world. Including specially commissioned research from a distinguished list of international authors, this volume makes a real contribution to the public dTable of ContentsINTRODUCTION ; 1. New Directions in the Analysis of Inequality and Poverty ; CONCEPTUAL ISSUES ; 2. Inequality is Bad for the Poor ; 3. Measurement of Income Distribution in Supranational Entities: The Case of the European Union ; 4. Beyond Conventional Measures of Income: Including Indirect Benefits and Taxes ; 5. Inequality Within the Household Reconsidered ; MULTIPLE DIMENSIONS ; 6. Inequality of Learning in Industrialised Countries ; 7. On the Multidimensionality of Poverty and Social Exclusion ; 8. Summarizing Multiple Deprivation Indicators ; 9. Robust Multidimensional Poverty Comparisons with Discrete Indicators of Well-Being ; PUBLIC POLICY ; 10. A Guaranteed Income for Europe's Children? ; 11. The Impact of Minimum Wages on the Distribution of Earnings and Employment in the USA ; 12. Minimum Wages, Training, and the Distribution of Earnings ; 13. Government Debt and the Portfolios of the Rich

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Book SynopsisThis is a collection of papers examining the issue of increasing inequality in the distribution of income in developing countries. Growth, Inequality and Poverty comprises many of the most important contributions to the debate.Trade Review"Growth, Inequality and Poverty, edited by Anthony Shorrocks and Rolph Van Der Hoeven, is a very useful addition to the literature on the subject. Perhaps for the first time, readers will see how the thinking has evolved, converged and where disagreements remain, all in one volume. Readers will also be able to learn about the cutting-edge technical analysis (econometric and otherwise) and observe it applied to countries and regions where poverty is rampant. This book will become an obligatory source for researchers in the subject and reading material for graduate and advanced undergraduate courses on development economics." * Dr Nora Lustig, Rectora/President, Universidad de las Américas, Puebla, México *"In this well researched and excellently edited study an array of experts analyzes the relationships between poverty, inequality and growth. Although there is disagreement on many issues, there is growing agreement that poverty reduction and greater equality are not only desirable in themselves but are also good for economic growth." * Paul Streeten, Professor Emeritus of Economics, Boston University, and founder and chair of the Board of World Development *Together they make a valuable collection of papers on linkages between inequality and/or trade with growth and/or povertyresearchers will find much of value in the volumes, and research students will find the reviews, methods and case studies informative and useful. * Journal of International Development *Table of Contents1. Economic Policy, Distribution, and Poverty: The Nature of Disagreements ; 2. Growth is Good for the Poor ; 3. Growth, Inequality, and Poverty: Looking Beyond the Averages ; 4. The Growth Elasticity of Poverty ; 5. Education is Good for the Poor: A Note on Dollar and Kraay ; 6. Growth, Distribution, and Poverty Reduction: LDCs are Falling Further Behind ; 7. Redistribution Does Matter: Growth and Redistribution for Poverty Reduction ; 8. Producing and Improved Geographic Profile of Poverty: Methodology and Evidence from Three Developing Countries ; 9. Twin Peaks: Distribution Dynamics of Economic Growth Across Indian States ; 10. A Decomposition of Inequality and Poverty Changes in the Context of Macroeconomic Adjustment: A Microsimulation Study for Cote d'Ivoire ; 11. Educational Expansion and Income Distribution: A Micro-Simulation for Ceara ; 12. Growth, Income Distribution, and Poverty: A Review

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Book SynopsisAs events highlight deep divisions in attitudes between America and Europe, this is a very timely study of different approaches to the problems of domestic inequality and poverty.Based on careful and systematic analysis of national data, the authors describe just how much the two continents differ in their level of State engagement in the redistribution of income. Discussing various possible economic explanations for the difference, they cover different levels of pre-tax income, openness, and social mobility; they survey politico-historical differences such as the varying physical size of nations, their electoral and legal systems, and the character of their political parties, as well as their experiences of war; and they examine sociological explanations, which include different attitudes to the poor and notions of social responsibility. Most importantly, they address attitudes to race, calculating that attitudes to race explain half the observed difference in levels of public redistrTrade Review... remarkable book ... Mr Alesina and Mr Glaeser, both Harvard economists, are doing what the best in their profession do well these days: seeking to explain society not merely with conventional economic tools but with analysis of institutions, geography and social behaviour. * The Economist 12 March 2004 *In what ways, and why, are the United States and Europe so far apart in social policy? Alesina and Glaeser give us as definitive an answer to this fundamental question as we shall ever see. * George A. Akerlof, Nobel Prize Laureate *This probing of the forces behind 'American exceptionalism', as measured by a much smaller welfare state than in Europe, is immensely important. The authors take a multi-discipline approach and consider many factors, including narrowly economic variables, political institutions, racial and ethnic diversity, the effects of wars, attitudes toward the poor, and still others. Their findings are sometimes surprising and frequently provocative. This monograph will quickly become the foundation of further literature on a subject of enormous significance. * Gary S. Becker, Nobel Prize Laureate *Table of Contents1. Introduction ; 2. Redistribution in the United Sates and Europe: the data ; 3. Economic explanations ; 4. Political institutions and redistribution ; 5. The origin of political institutions ; 6. Race and redistribution ; 7. The Ideology of Redistribution ; 8. Conclusions ; Index

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Book SynopsisPoor Justice: How the Poor Fare in the Courts provides a vivid and informative account of what happens when the legal system decides cases in areas crucial to the poor''s economic and social well-being, including government benefits, child welfare, homelessness, the mental health system, education, and the criminal justice system. Drawing from court room observations, court decisions and supplementary legal and case materials, this book spans the street level justice of administrative hearings and lower courts (where people plead for welfare benefits or for a child not to be taken away), the mid-level justice of state courts (where advocates argue for the right to shelter for the homeless and for the rights of the mentally disabled), and the high justice of the Supreme Court (where the battle for school integration hPoor Justice: How the Poor Fare in the Courts provides a vivid portrait and appraisal of how the lives of poor people are disrupted or helped by the judicial system, from the lowest to the highest courts. Drawing from court room observations, court decisions, and other material, this book spans the street level justice of administrative hearings and lower courts (where people plead for welfare benefits or for a child not to be taken away), the mid-level justice of state courts (where advocates argue for the right to shelter for the homeless and for the rights of the mentally disabled), and the high justice of the Supreme Court (where the battle for school integration has represented a route out of poverty and the stop and frisk cases illustrate a route to greater poverty, through the mass incarceration of people of color). Poor Justice brings readers inside the courts, telling the story through the words and actions of the judges, lawyers, and ordinary people who populate it. It seeks to both edify and criticize. Readers will learn not only how courts work, but also how courts sometimes help - and often fail - the poor.as represented a route out of poverty). Poor Justice brings readers inside the courts, telling the story through the words and actions of the judges, lawyers, and ordinary people who populate it. It seeks to both edify and criticize. Readers will learn not only how courts work, but also how courts sometimes help, but often fail, the poor.Trade ReviewPoor Justice is one of those rare books that is not only a riveting read, but also makes an important scholarly contribution. Vicki Lens's clear and engaging writing provides readers with a sobering analysis of how marginalized groups fare in the U.S. legal system. As a former legal services lawyer and social scientist, Vicki Lens shares an insider's knowledge with an outsider's critical eye. * Corey Shdaimah, PhD, LLM, Associate Professor, University of Maryland School of Social Work *Lens draws upon her rich experiences as a lawyer, social worker, and ground-level researcher to illuminate the daily experiences of people without income in the courts. Like almost no one else, she knows unglamorous but essential corners of law, including welfare hearings, commitment proceedings for people with mental disabilities, and family courts. This text is a fine primer on law for the poor - and on the uses and limits of all kinds of law. * Felicia Kornbluh, PhD, MA, Director of Gender, Sexuality, and Women's Studies and Associate Professor of History, University of Vermont *Vicki Lens provides an insider's human perspective on how the courts can in fact work for the least advantaged in our society. Poor Justice deftly combines ethnographic detail of courtroom drama with legal analysis and political critique. It makes for compelling reading and important scholarship about how the courts do indeed offer some basis for hope. This book deserves wide readership by students, scholars, policymakers, and citizens alike. * Sanford Schram, PhD, MA, Professor of Political Science, Hunter College, CUNY *Professor Lens has written a scholarly and immensely readable analysis of justice - actually the lack of justice - for poor Americans. It is a powerful and irresistible call to action. * Robert Hayes, JD, Founder, National Coalition for the Homeless; President and CEO, Community Healthcare Network *Table of ContentsIntroduction Part I: Street Level Justice One: The Rules of Engagement Two: Welfare Fair Hearings Three: Child Maltreatment Proceedings Four: The Justice of Street Level Justice Part II: Justice for the Many: Social Reform Litigation Five: Courts as a Catalyst for Social Change Six: Protecting or Coercing Persons with Mental Disabilities Seven: Legal Advocacy for the Homeless Eight: The Justice of Social Reform Litigation Part III: High Justice: The Supreme Court Nine: The Supreme Court Ten: Race, Education and the Constitution Eleven: Criminal Justice and Racial Profiling Twelve: The High Justice of the Supreme Court Conclusion References Index

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Book SynopsisThe Shame of Poverty invites the reader to question their understanding of poverty by bringing into close relief the day-to-day experiences of low-income families living in societies as diverse as Norway and Uganda, Britain and India, China, South Korea, and Pakistan. The volume explores Nobel laureate Amartya Sen''s contention that shame lies at the core of poverty. Drawing on original research and literature from many disciplines, it reveals that the pain of poverty extends beyond material hardship. Rather than being shameless, as is often claimed by the media, people in poverty almost invariably feel ashamed at being unable to fulfil their personal aspirations or to live up to societal expectations due to their lack of income and other resources. Such shame not only hurts, adding to the negative experience of poverty, but undermines confidence and individual agency, can lead to depression and even suicide, and may well contribute to the perpetuation of poverty. Moreover, people in pTrade ReviewThe Shame of Poverty presents innovative and imaginative research that explores the connection between poverty and shame -- a relationship that has been neglected by many poverty scholars. * Faradj Koliev, Political Studies Review *Table of Contents1. The Origins of Poverty ; 2. Poverty Research and Measurement ; 3. Constructions of Shame ; 4. Poverty, Shame, and Stigma ; 5. Cultural Conceptions of Poverty and Shame ; 6. Conceiving of Poverty Without Shame ; 7. Shame in the Everyday Experience of Poverty ; 8. Responses to Poverty-Related Shame ; 9. Shaming People in Poverty: Attitudes and Actions ; 10. Shaming People in Poverty: Media and Policy ; 11. Poverty, Shame, and Society ; References

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Book SynopsisDancing with Broken Bones gives voice and face to a vulnerable and disempowered population whose stories often remain untold: the urban dying poor. Drawing on complex issues surrounding poverty, class, and race, Moller illuminates the unique sufferings that often remain unknown and hidden within a culture of broad invisibility. He demonstrates how a complex array of factors, such as mistrust of physicians, regrettable indignities in care, and inadequate communication among providers, patients, and families, shape the experience of the dying poor in the inner city. This book challenges readers to look at reality in a different way. Demystifying stereotypes that surround poverty, Moller illuminates how faith, remarkable optimism, and an unassailable spirit provide strength and courage to the dying poor. Dancing with Broken Bones serves as a rallying call for compassionate individuals everywhere to understand and respond to the needs of the especially vulnerable, yet inspiring, people who comprise the world of the inner city dying poor.Trade ReviewRead this book. It will remind you why you became a physician. * The Lancet *Moller has produced a profound literary work. * Journal of Social Work in End-of-Life & Palliative Care *...stories of courage, faith, suffering, and neglect are interwoven in a remarkable book for anyone with an interest in end-of-life care. * Journal of Palliative Medicine *Moller takes us through doors that we otherwise would not cross. He introduces us to people who are authentically themselves, fully alive, despite dismal circumstances. We hear their anger as well as their humor, see their suffering as well as their joy. They teach us the importance of feeling connected to others and the critical value of forgiveness, gratitude, and love at the end of life. Suffering misfortune that few of us can imagine, the people whose stories Moller tells reveal the inherent dignity and the indomitable nature of the human spirit. * - Ira Byock, MD, author of Dying Well, and co-founder of Life's End Institute: Missoula Demonstration Project *For most of us, the lives and deaths of the urban homeless remain invisible and largely unfathomable. Dr. Moller and his colleagues have had the courage to enter this world, and to even take medical students with them! In Dancing with Broken Bones, we too are invited along to witness its tragedies and its humanity. In these remarkable real-life narratives, we can contemplate what a dignified death might look like in the face of extreme poverty and homelessness. In doing so, we are invited to consider what is important in our own privileged lives and deaths, and how we should be caring for those who are far less fortunate. * Timothy E. Quill, MD, University of Rochester School of Medicine *Dr. Moller has shed light on the forgotten world of illness and dying in the urban poor. Through eloquence, grace, and wit, he makes us face what to many is too painful to contemplate - death that is painful, lonely, and unwanted. This book will serve as a landmark in the death and dying literature, forcing health professionals and society at large to work harder toward an equitable system of healthcare for the living and the dying. * David E. Weissman, MD, Palliative Care Center, Medical College of Wisconsin *This book moved me to tears, to anger, to repeated shocks of recognition, as well as to joy and to pride at being part of a human race whose members are capable of such remarkable love and care for one another. * Diane E. Meier, MD, Mount Sinai School of Medicine *The grace and dignity of humanity is pervasive and memorable in these stories of living with poverty and fatal illness; but I hope that we are also profoundly moved to relieve the tragic circumstances that poverty and inept healthcare arrangements inflicted upon the people whose stories David Moller tells. * Joanne Lynn, MD, The Washington Home Center for Palliative Care Studies *Table of ContentsIntroduction: Revisiting Dancing with Broken Bones ; Chapter 1. Crossing the Tracks ; Chapter 2. Dying Poor: An Invisible World ; Chapter 3. Dying the Public Hospital System: Institutional Arrangements and Provider Perspectives ; Chapter 4. Courage Through Suffering: Snapshots of the Dying Poor ; Chapter 5. Triumph and Faith Through Harsh Reality and Personal Tragedy: Lucille Angel ; Chapter 6. Life on the Brink: Mr. and Mrs. Wheeler ; Chapter 7. A Conclusion: Conscious Listening, Mindful Presence-A Lesson Learned ; Epilogue. An Urban Thoreau

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Book SynopsisFor decades, the idea that more education will lead to greater individual and national prosperity has been a cornerstone of developed economies. Indeed, it is almost universally believed that college diplomas give Americans and Europeans a competitive advantage in the global knowledge wars.Challenging this conventional wisdom, The Global Auction forces us to reconsider our deeply held and mistaken views about how the global economy really works and how to thrive in it. Drawing on cutting-edge research based on a major international study, the authors show that the competition for good, middle-class jobs is now a worldwide competition--an auction for cut-priced brainpower--fueled by an explosion of higher education across the world. They highlight a fundamental power shift in favor of corporate bosses and emerging economies such as China and India, a change that is driving the new global high-skill, low-wage workforce. Fighting for a dwindling supply of good jobs will compel the middle Trade Reviewa very important contribution to the debate on skills and inequality. * Marius R. Busemeyer, Socio-Economic Review *Table of Contents1. Introduction ; 2. The Promise ; 3. The Education Explosion ; 4. The Quality Revolution ; 5. Intellectual Arbitrage ; 6. Digital Taylorism ; 7. War for Talent ; 8. High Skills, Low Wages ; 9. The Rat Race ; 10. A New Opportunity ; Notes ; References ; Index

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Book SynopsisFirst published in 1989, The Undeserving Poor was a critically acclaimed and enormously influential account of America''s enduring debate about poverty. Taking stock of the last quarter century, Michael B. Katz''s new edition of this classic is virtually a new book. As the first did, it will force all concerned Americans to reconsider the foundations of our policies toward the poor, especially in the wake of the Great Recession that began in 2008.Katz highlights how throughout American history, the poor have been regarded as undeserving: people who do not deserve sympathy because they brought their poverty on themselves, either through laziness and immorality, or because they are culturally or mentally deficient. This long-dominant view sees poverty as a personal failure, serving to justify America''s mean-spirited treatment of the poor. Katz reminds us, however, that there are other explanations of poverty besides personal failure. Poverty has been written about as a problem of place, of resources, of political economy, of power, and of market failure. Katz looks at each idea in turn, showing how they suggest more effective approaches to our struggle against poverty. The Second Edition includes important new material. It now sheds light on the revival of the idea of culture in poverty research; the rehabilitation of Daniel Patrick Moynihan; the resurgent role of biology in discussions of the causes of poverty, such as in The Bell Curve; and the human rights movement''s intensified focus on alleviating world poverty. It emphasizes the successes of the War on Poverty and Great Society, especially at the grassroots level. It is also the first book to chart the rise and fall of the underclass as a concept driving public policy.A major revision of a landmark study, The Undeserving Poor helps readers to see poverty-and our efforts to combat it--in a new light.Trade ReviewA convincing and clear historical perspective on the peculiar perceptions of poverty and welfare in the United States . * William Julius Wilson, University of Chicago *Table of ContentsPreface ; Chapter One ; The Undeserving Poor: Morals, Culture and Biology ; Chapter Two ; Poverty and the Politics of Liberation ; Chapter Three ; Intellectual Foundations of the War on Poverty and Great Society ; Chapter Four ; Interpretations of Poverty in the Conservative Ascendance ; Chapter Five ; The Rise and Fall of the <"Underclass>" ; Epilogue ; What Kind of a Problem is Poverty? ; Acknowledgments ; Index

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Book SynopsisStudies the working poor in the United States, focusing on the relation between welfare and low-wage earnings among working mothers. Grounded in the experience of thirty-three women living in Milwaukee and Racine, Wisconsin, this title tells the story of their struggle to balance child care and wage-earning in poorly paying jobs.Trade Review"The originality of Both Hands Tied lies not just in its rich case study interview materials - in poor women's voices and the trajectories of their work and home lives - but in its careful tying of those materials to shifting national, state, and local economic policies." - Micaela di Leonardo, Northwestern University"

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Book SynopsisThis volume tells the story of what the 1988 closing of the Chrysler assembly plant in Kenosha, Wisconsin, meant to the people who lived in that town. Through interviews with displaced autoworkers and other members of the community it dramatizes the lessons Kenoshans drew from the plant shutdown.

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Book SynopsisThe farm crisis of the 1980s was the greatest economic disaster to hit rural America since the Depression. The crisis gave rise to a social trauma that affects farmers in the 21st century. This is a chronicle of the experience.

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Book SynopsisThe farm crisis of the 1980s was the greatest economic disaster to hit rural America since the Depression. The crisis gave rise to a social trauma that affects farmers in the 21st century. This is a chronicle of the experience.Trade Review"Dudley presents a subtle, insightful, and nuanced treatment of the rural 'community' itself, emphasizing its divisions and contradictions.... [A] very good and enlightening book. With Debt and Dispossession, Kathryn Dudley joins the ranks of such anthropologists as Jane Adams, Deborah Fink, and Sonya Salomon." - David Danbom, Rural History; "Dudley writes with rare skill and passion. This is a mid-stream account of America coming of age. Midwesterners are protagonists who may yet wrest a more satisfactory resolution, thanks to this superb contribution." - Deborah Fink, Annals of Iowa

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Book SynopsisA study of parenting and child out-comes in disadvantaged communities. Based on more than 500 interviews and case studies, the book reveals how parents have managed different levels of resources and dangers and contributed to the success of their children. Intended for sociologists, educators and policy makers.

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Book SynopsisBased on over 500 interviews/case studies of families in inner-city Philadelphia, this text reveals how parents managed different levels of resources and dangers in low-income neighbourhoods and how this management, rather than community involvement, contributed to the success of their children.

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Book SynopsisConfronts the everyday politics of surveillance by exploring the worlds and words of those who know it best - the watched. The book focuses on the conversations of low-income mothers from Appalachian Ohio as they talk about the welfare bureaucracy and its remarkably advanced surveillance system.

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Book SynopsisDrawing on surveys of public attitudes and analyses of more than 40 years of television and news-magazine stories on poverty, this book demonstrates how public opposition to welfare is fed by a potent combination of racial stereotypes and misinformation about the true nature of America's poor.

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Book SynopsisThere was a time when America's poor faced a stark choice between access to social welfare and full civil rights - a predicament that forced them to forfeit their citizenship in exchange for economic relief. Over time, however, our welfare system improved dramatically. This work demonstrates that its legacy of disenfranchisement persisted.Trade Review"This outstanding book incisively recasts the history of the American welfare state as a series of struggles over the terms of citizenship. Through a succession of carefully researched and artfully drawn historical case studies, Goldberg demonstrates that conflict over the citizenship status of welfare beneficiaries played a major role in the fundamental battles about race, class, and gender that shaped the nation." - Robert C. Lieberman, author of Shaping Race Policy"

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Book SynopsisA substantial number of American children experience poverty, and there are numerous programs designed to alleviate or even eliminate poverty. This book tackles the problem of evaluating these programs by examining them using a common metric: their impact on earnings in adulthood.

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Book SynopsisWhen middle-class residents fled American cities in the 1960s and '70s, government services and investment capital left too. Countless urban neighborhoods entered phases of precipitous decline, prompting the creation of community-based organizations to bring resources back to the city. This book examines such organizations that drive urban life.Trade Review"This is a valuable work that will influence the way sociologists understand the cycle of development of poor, urban neighborhoods. Nicole Marwell makes a unique contribution with an analytic strategy that emphasizes the important role played by community-based organizations, actors that have been generally ignored in urban sociology." - Mitchell Duneier, author of Sidewalk"

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