Description
"Written with the vividness of a novel, [ Evicted ] offers a dark mirror of middle-class America''s obsession with real estate, laying bare the workings of the low end of the market, where evictions have become just another part of an often lucrative business model." --Jennifer Schuessler, New York Times "Powerful, monstrously effective...[ Evicted ] documents with impressive steadiness of purpose and command of detail the lives of impoverished renters at the bottom of Milwaukee''s housing market...In describing the plight of these people, Desmond reveals the confluence of seemingly unrelated forces that have conspired to create a thoroughly humiliated class of the almost or soon-to-be homeless...But the power of this book abides in the indelible impression left by its stories." --Jill Leovy, The American Scholar "A groundbreaking work... Desmond delivers a gripping, novelistic narrative... This stunning, remarkable book - a scholar''s 21st-century How the Other Half Lives - demands a wide audience." -- Kirkus Reviews (starred) "Gripping storytelling and meticulous research undergird this outstanding ethnographic study... Desmond identifies affordable housing as a leading social justice issue of our time and offers concrete solutions to the crisis." -- Publishers Weekly (starred) "Highly recommended." -- Library Journal (starred) "It''s hard to paint a slumlord as a sympathetic character, but Harvard professor Desmond manages to do so in this compelling look at home evictions in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, one of America''s most segregated cities... [Desmond] does a marvelous job telling these harrowing stories of people who find themselves in bad situations, shining a light on how eviction sets people up to fail... This is essential reading." -- Booklist (starred) "Evicted is astonishing--a masterpiece of writing and research that fills a tremendous gap in our understanding of poverty. Taking us into some of America''s poorest neighborhoods, Desmond illustrates how eviction leads to a cascade of events, often triggered by something as simple as a child throwing a snowball at a car, that can trap families in a cycle of poverty for years. Beautiful, harrowing, and deeply human, Evicted is a must read for anyone who cares about social justice in this country. I loved it." -- Rebecca Skloot, author of The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks "This story is about one of the most basic human needs--a roof overhead--and yet Matthew Desmond has told it in sweeping, immersive, heartbreaking fashion. We enter the lives of both renters and landlords at shoulder height, experiencing their triumphs, struggles, cruelty, kindness, loss, and love. One hopes that Evicted will change public policy. It will certainly change how people respond to the world and those who inhabit it." -- Jeff Hobbs , author of The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace "This sensitive, achingly beautiful ethnography should refocus our understanding of poverty in America on the simple challenge of keeping a roof over your head." -- Robert D. Putnam , Professor of Public Policy, Harvard University, and author of Bowling Alone and Our Kids "This is an extraordinary and crucial piece of work. Read it. Please, read it." -- Adrian Nicole LeBlanc , author of Random Family "Matthew Desmond tells stories of people at their most vulnerable. The characters that populate this lyrical book, many of whom are women and children, are our true American heroes, showing great courage and mythic strength against forces that are much larger than the individual. Their stories are gripping and moving--tragic, too. It''s a wonder and a shame that here, in the most prosperous country in the world, a roof over one''s head can be elusive for so many." -- Jesmyn Ward , author of Men We Reaped and Salvage the Bones "Evicted is a striking account of a severe and rapidly developing form of economic hardship in the U.S. Matthew Desmond''s riveting narrative of the experiences of families in Milwaukee embroiled in the process of eviction will not only shock general readers, but it will broaden the perspective of experts on urban poverty as well. This powerful, well-written book also includes revealing portraits of profit-seeking landlords, as well as important findings from comprehensive surveys to back up the ethnographic research. Evicted is that rare book that both enlightens and serves as an urgent call for action." -- William Julius Wilson , Lewis P. and Linda L. Geyser University Professor, Harvard University, and author of When Work Disappears