The Working Poor: Invisible in America

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The Working Poor examines the "forgotten America" where "millions live in the shadow of prosperity, in the twilight between poverty and well-being." These are citizens for whom the American Dream is out of reach despite their willingness to work hard. Struggling to simply survive, they live so close to the edge of poverty that a minor obstacle, such as a car breakdown or a temporary illness, can lead to a downward financial spiral that can prove impossible to reverse. David Shipler interviewed many such working people for this book and his profiles offer an intimate look at what it is like to be trapped in a cycle of dead-end jobs without benefits or opportunities for advancement. He shows how some negotiate a broken welfare system that is designed to help yet often does not, while others proudly refuse any sort of government assistance, even to their detriment. Still others have no idea that help is available at all.

"As a culture, the United States is not quite sure about the causes of poverty, and is therefore uncertain about the solutions," he writes. Though he details many ways in which current assistance programs could be more effective and rational, he does not believe that government alone, nor any other single variable, can solve the problem. Instead, a combination of things are required, beginning with the political will needed to create a relief system "that recognizes both the society's obligation through government and business, and the individual's obligation through labor and family." He does propose some specific steps in the right direction such as altering the current wage structure, creating more vocational programs (in both the public and private sectors), developing a fairer way to distribute school funding, and implementing basic national health care.

Prepare to have any preconceived notions about those living in poverty in America challenged by this affecting book. --Shawn Carkonen

Book Description

“Nobody who works hard should be poor in America,” writes Pulitzer Prize winner David Shipler. Clear-headed, rigorous, and compassionate, he journeys deeply into the lives of individual store clerks and factory workers, farm laborers and sweat-shop seamstresses, illegal immigrants in menial jobs and Americans saddled with immense student loans and paltry wages. They are known as the working poor.

They perform labor essential to America’s comfort. They are white and black, Latino and Asian--men and women in small towns and city slums trapped near the poverty line, where the margins are so tight that even minor setbacks can cause devastating chain reactions. Shipler shows how liberals and conservatives are both partly right–that practically every life story contains failure by both the society and the individual. Braced by hard fact and personal testimony, he unravels the forces that confine people in the quagmire of low wages. And unlike most works on poverty, this book also offers compelling portraits of employers struggling against razor-thin profits and competition from abroad. With pointed recommendations for change that challenge Republicans and Democrats alike, The Working Poor stands to make a difference.

Customer Reviews:

must read.......2007-09-30

This was an excellent book. A real eye opener into a whole other world. I'm giving it to my college student daughter, to make sure that she graduates. The last book that inspired me in the same way was Barbara Ehrenreich's Nine to Five. This is journalism at its best, excellent writing, excellent research. I only hope that its message gets through.

well researched.......2007-08-06

I found Working Poor to be well-researched, and I prefer it's tone to Nickel and Dimed. Shipler was thorough and balanced in his view of the poor in America. In the various stories, Shipler takes us into the psyche of the "working poor", showing the different circumstances that allowed these individuals to remain, or get into poverty.

Phenomenal.......2007-05-14

If you've ever taken pause to consider what makes the world go round as it relates to commercial or economic pursuits, you owe it to yourself to read this book.

It's a great start, but...........2007-03-08

Let me start by saying what I liked and appreciated about this book before I go on to say what I didn't. First of all, it's great that most of the focus has been placed on individual families and circumstances. He's not just rattling off statistics; he's actually taking you to the living rooms and workplaces of real human beings and for the most part letting them tell their own story. It is also clear that Shipler does not have a political agenda; he acknowledges the failings of both the left and right to address this issue on pretty equal terms. The author is not blaming the individuals in question entirely for their situations, nor is he completely blaming society or "the system;" rather, he shows in an extrodinarily clear and sober manner the variety of circumstances which cause poverty and which continually leave those afflicted in its grasp.

The main problem that I have with this book is that I feel it left out a lot of people and a lot of problems that could have easily been addressed. For one, most of the people in the book are urban minorities, and that seems to be where most of the focus lies. There's not a lot of emphasis on the rural poor (with the notable exception of migrant farm workers) among whom circumstances are quite different and in many ways even harder than those of the urban poor. In addition, Shipler is constantly noting the lack of education among poor people but doesn't ever mention the fact that ever-rising and insane tuition costs prevent many perfectly capable *middle-class* people of getting to college in the first place, thus rendering them just as poor as the people who started out that way. (Financial aid actually favors the very poor, and the middle class are often left in the limbo of "too much income to qualify, not enough money to pay out of pocket" and the only way to go is through financially crippling student loans.)

I also wanted to say something about the Earned Income Credit, because it is something that Shipler thoroughly sings the praises of throughout the book. First of all, it's not that easy to get it. As a personal example, from 1999-2005, even though I made hardly any money and should have qualified, I did not because I was under 25 (a stipulation that Shipler neglects to mention.) This year, I am 25, but I still did not qualify because I had gotten married. (Which is another big issue Shipler neglects to mention: the marriage penalty.) If you are married you have to make an absurdly low amount of money to qualify, so if you both work full time like good Americans without taking any other government money (which you wouldn't qualify for anyway unless you have children), even if you both make minimun wage and are barely scraping by, you still wouldn't qualify. So it's really not the panacea that he makes it out to be.

There are a lot of other relevant issues that Shipler never brings up. For example, why does someone who makes $15,000 per year have to pay the same percentage of their income to Social Security as someone who makes $75,000 per year? What about all those people on Social Security, anyway? Why are people without health insurance forced to pay for someone else's Medicare? Why doesn't a high school diploma mean anything anymore? There are a billion questions that, as a poor person, I wanted answers to, which is the very reason I bought this book. But there is so much emphasis in here about one very specific type of poor person (urban minority female with way too many children) who also happens to be the most stereotypical kind of poor person, without giving everyone else who is struggling to survive a very equal voice. But like I said at the beginning, this book is a good starting point. If you are poor, or have ever been poor, you may not get as much out of it as a wealthier person. If you have a lot of money or are otherwise quite comfortable financially, please read this book. It may not give you the entire picture of poverty in America, but it will put a real human face on the problem.

YOU HAVE TO READ THIS!.......2007-01-28

This should be required reading for everyone in this country. This book does what "Nickle and Dimed" could only dream of doing. This is not some man just trying on poverty to see how it feels. Shipler gets down to the bare bones of poverty and details the web of causes and effects. Speaking as someone that's been to hell and back when it comes to poverty this book was spot on in detailing the vast array of circumstances that all rely on and influence each other. He does well to point out that poverty is a mix of bad circumstances and bad choices and that it's all a painful cycle. He also does a great job at illustrating the way the working poor live not only paycheck to paycheck, but crisis to crisis and disconnect notice to disconnect notice.
Not only does Shipler highlight all the gritty details of the life of the working poor he outlines very reasonable and more importantly POSSIBLE solutions to combat poverty. His solutions are more common sense and can be done if everyone gets on board to recognize the problem and agree to work on solving it.
We will never get rid of poverty, some people will always make the negative choices that keep them poor. But there is no excuse for such a wealthy country to build it's empire on the backs of the poor and then refuse to let them in the door.
Read this book, then pass it on. You will learn more than you ever thought you could about the people that you never thought to notice.

Ain't it hard?(The Working Poor: Invisible in America)(Book Review): An article from: Issues in Science and Technology

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Ain't it hard?(The Working Poor: Invisible in America)(Book Review): An article from: Issues in Science and Technology
Kathleen Courrier
Manufacturer: Thomson Gale
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

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This digital document is an article from Issues in Science and Technology, published by Thomson Gale on September 22, 2004. The length of the article is 1144 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Ain't it hard?(The Working Poor: Invisible in America)(Book Review)
Author: Kathleen Courrier
Publication: Issues in Science and Technology (Magazine/Journal)
Date: September 22, 2004
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 21 Issue: 1 Page: 91(2)

Article Type: Book Review

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Life on the edge.(The Working Poor by David K. Shipler)(Book Review): An article from: Sojourners

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Life on the edge.(The Working Poor by David K. Shipler)(Book Review): An article from: Sojourners
Chuck Collins
Manufacturer: Thomson Gale
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Binding: Digital

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This digital document is an article from Sojourners, published by Thomson Gale on September 1, 2004. The length of the article is 915 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Life on the edge.(The Working Poor by David K. Shipler)(Book Review)
Author: Chuck Collins
Publication: Sojourners (Magazine/Journal)
Date: September 1, 2004
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 33 Issue: 9 Page: 42(2)

Article Type: Book Review

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Shipler, David. The Working Poor: Invisible in America.(Book Review) : An article from: International Social Science Review

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Shipler, David. The Working Poor: Invisible in America.(Book Review) : An article from: International Social Science Review
Kathy A. Zawicki
Manufacturer: Thomson Gale
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

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This digital document is an article from International Social Science Review, published by Thomson Gale on September 22, 2005. The length of the article is 1086 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Shipler, David. The Working Poor: Invisible in America.(Book Review)
Author: Kathy A. Zawicki
Publication: International Social Science Review (Magazine/Journal)
Date: September 22, 2005
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 80 Issue: 3-4 Page: 186(3)

Article Type: Book Review

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Work and poverty.(Review)(The Working Poor: Invisible in America )(Book Review): An article from: Public Interest

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Work and poverty.(Review)(The Working Poor: Invisible in America )(Book Review): An article from: Public Interest
Joel Schwartz
Manufacturer: The National Affairs, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

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This digital document is an article from Public Interest, published by Thomson Gale on September 22, 2004. The length of the article is 1808 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Work and poverty.(Review)(The Working Poor: Invisible in America )(Book Review)
Author: Joel Schwartz
Publication: Public Interest (Magazine/Journal)
Date: September 22, 2004
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Issue: 157 Page: 131(5)

Article Type: Book Review

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Book Description

When individuals or organizations face significant situations or challenges, one of the first priorities is to understand the issues involved and to work out what needs to be done. In many cases, we do not need any formal assistance to help this process and can think our way through the steps that seem to be most appropriate. However, on occasion the issues or the problems may not be entirely clear and a structured approach can help considerably.

To meet this need, HRD Press has a suite of simple and easy-to-use but comprehensive diagnostic assessment profiles to help people understand their skills or the situations they face more effectively. HRD Press' diagnostic assessments fall into three categories:

Assessments that measure the individual are concerned with competency. These profiles provide participants with an inventory of their relative skills in subcategories within each topic.

Assessments that measure the team's or organization's performance as a whole (usually relative to the individual's perception of his or her own performance or level of competence).

Assessments that measure a particular task or situation in which the style that is adopted or utilized by the individual or by others is important to understand.

All of these assessments are described in detail on the subsequent pages. In most cases, assessments have comprehensive facilitator guides to explain the underlying structure of the profile and to help facilitators to provide structured feedback. Person and organization assessments also have detailed coaching guides which provide practical "how to" tips on each question in the relevant profile.

Book Description

This textbook is a revised and enlarged version of notes written for a one-semester course on electromagnetism. It covers the theory of electromagnetic phenomena in vacuum and in material media. In addition to the classical themes of electrodynamics, the book deals with some related subjects of particular current interest, such as superconductivity and numerical methods. Much emphasis is put on special relativity, in the covariant formulation of electromagnetism, and in the symmetry properties of the theory. The book includes a CD-ROM with didactic software, to solve boundary value problems in electrostatics and magnetostatics. The book is conceived in such a way as to guide the reader from the fundamentals of the theory to its most recent modern applications.

Customer Reviews:

An excellent text and reference.......2002-07-18

There are very books available which combines mathematical formulation of electrodynamics with physical aspects clearly explained. Classic books like Jackson are generally considered too tough even at graduate level. This book provides an intermediate level text which will be very useful for a Master's programme.
The emphasis on relativity and covariant formulation is a refreshing feature of the book. Another extremely well written chapter is on radiation due to moving charge. An interesting addition is the inclusion of a chapter on superconductivity, which reminds one about a similar chapter in Feynmann Lectures on Physics.
I would strongly recommend this book as a text book for the first course in electrodynamics at Master's level. We have included this in the list of books recommended for such a course in the Physics programme at the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay.

Highly recommended introduction to the field.......2000-09-18

This book has been successfully used in a course for advanced MsC students at the Imperial College in London, UK. The book has been welcome by the students who found it very useful not only for its clarity but also for its collection of problems. The book achieves the right balance between presentation and content. It is a fact that most students cannot grasp all the information contained in some of the classical books in the field in one semester. Some of the excellent books in the field, like the famous book by Jackson, contains too much information for a course. This book gives a consistent well-presented introduction to electromagnetism, without loosing generality, which can be covered in one semester. In addition, the book comes with a program for solving electrostatic and magnetostatic problems. This added tool, not only increases its pedagogical value, but also finds great acceptance in the more computer-literate younger generations.

A nice book on electromagnetism with a didactic software.......2000-08-26

Fundamental of Electromagnetism: Vacuum Electrodynamics, Media and Relativity

This book is based on the large experience the authors have acquired teaching a course on Electromagnetism at Instituto Balseiro, in Bariloche, Argentina.

Chapter I presents a very exciting essay on the historical perspectives of Electromagnetism, which becomes an excellent appetizer for the rest of the themes developed in the book.

Chapters II and III are devoted to the presentation of relativistic kinematics and dynamics, with an interesting collection of experiments, which help understand the properties of space-time. From there on the authors follow a traditional scheme and develop aspects of the electromagnetic field in vacuum. In this context, in Chapters IV through VIII the properties of the electric charge and of the electrostatic field, the solutions of Laplace and Poisson equations, including numerical methods, the laws of Ampere and Biot-Savart and multipole expansions are presented. The complete Maxwell equations, the concepts of electromagnetic energy, a clear discussion of the symmetry properties and conservation laws associated with Maxwell equations and the properties of radiation fields are also discussed.

These topics are complemented in later chapters with a presentation of the covariant formulation, the properties of electromagnetic fields in material media, and finally a chapter on the properties of superconductors from the point of view of electromagnetism. The order of presentation is chosen to emphasize the fact that electromagnetic phenomena take place in the vacuum space surrounding atoms. Electromagnetic fields in material media are obtained as averages of the microscopic fields, a point of view which prepares the ground for the understanding of microscopic models of matter and for a deeper comprehension of the underlying phenomenology. Those readers which are familiar with a phenomenological presentation will be surprised by this particular idea of the authors, which is highly stimulating and has a great potential when proceeding to study the electromagnetic models of matter at a microscopic level.

Another very interesting aspect of the book is the software "PhysicSolver" which comes with it. The program, developed by Prof. Sergio Pissanetzky, is based on his large experience and provides a means for finding numerical solutions to problems in electrostatics and magnetostatics. Teachers as well as students will find this tool very useful. At the end of each chapter problems which can be solved with "PhysicSolver" are indicated. Also, the reader can use the software to solve any problem for which there is no simple analytical solution or to gain physical insight through a pictorial representation of the solutions.

The work is aimed at teachers and students in Physics, but it is certainly a reference for teachers and students in Engineering, interested in a presentation of the fundamentals of electromagnetism and of its applications.

Víctor H. Hamity

Facultad de Matemática, Astronomía y Física, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Argentina.

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With an abundance of lyricism and insight, Steven Meyers writes about the natural history and sporting opportunities found on his home river, New Mexico's San Juan River. Rising out of southern Colorado's majestic San Juan Mountains and flowing through the arid hardscrabble of the Southwest, the San Juan has garnered a devoted following of fly-fishers. This classic tailwater fishery is renowned around the world for easy access and trophy-sized trout. But with fame comes a cost, and the river is now host to a carnival of crowds, poachers, and crass trophy seekers. Meyers mourns the loss of solitude while celebrating his own ways of seeking solace on a river known only superficially by most who fish its hallowed pools and riffles.

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Excellent Book

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Easy, simple self defense.

Nothing Groundbreaking

Ego and the Dillman Series

Humane Pressure Point Self-Defense: Dillman Method for Law Enforcement, Medical Personnel, Business Professionals, Men and Women
George A. Dillman
Manufacturer: Dillman Karate Intl
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1889267031

Book Description

An exciting new approach for dealing with violent encounters. Based on reserach and practical application and developed in cooperation with police forces.

Customer Reviews:

Excellent Book.......2007-07-20

George Dillman's book on pressure point self-defense is well illustrated and the techniques are easily understood. Understanding pressure points is another skill to be utilized in dealing quickly with an attacker. If you are in the military than this book is probably not for you, but for all civilians out there this book offers the opportunity for a lower impact, non-lethal way to deal with aggressive individuals.

My Rating of the Delivery of This Product.......2007-03-18

I have yet to read this book because I still have other books bought from Amazon.com that I need to finish. In all cases [...] and associated vendors have provided me with nothing but outstanding service where the product arrived in as good or in better condition than advertised within the stated estimated time of delivery.

The service received is a model for all businesses to emulate.

Thankyou very much for requesting my input.

Sincerely,

James T. Early

Easy, simple self defense........2007-03-16

I ordered this book for my teenage daughter. Then ordered one for myself. And I will order more for other family members and friends. I have reviewed, purchased and returned several other books with instructions and techniques you simply aren't going to master from a book. Dillman understands that and cuts to the chase with really simple but effective self defense methods you won't find elsewhere.

Nothing Groundbreaking.......2007-01-21

At first glance this book looked really good however, once I purchased it I found out that it was oversimplified. Mainly just pictures of patterned movements of where to strike an attacker, with no hope of replicating the movments in real life for the average person. The best book I have come across so far is Attack Proof by Perkins. Have a look at Attack Proof first before buying this one, you wont regret it.

Ego and the Dillman Series.......2006-02-11

I found the book informative after getting past all the who's who pictures in the first part. The first ten pages are of Dillman and the celebraties he has hob nobbed with over the years.

I am more impressed with the actual content which is what this book should be about. Learning pressure/vital points and how to use them in self-defense.

I would purchase his other books and will skip the ego pages.

Charles

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Writing, for Julia Cameron, is neither solely vocation nor avocation: it is a way of life. It comes first thing in the morning, while the horses are waiting to be fed; it happens at the kitchen counter, while the onions are sautéing; it takes place on "dates" at café tables shared with likeminded friends; it unfurls in the mind as the '65 pickup "bucks over the rutted dirt roads like a stiff-legged bronco." The more than 40 brief personal essays that make up The Right to Write are an unyielding affirmation of the writing life and a denigration of all that gets in the way: busy schedules, procrastination, insecurity, lack of writing space, a day job--you get the point. Cameron's commonsense advice is liberating to anyone who has felt hampered by making a big deal out of writing (this "tends to make writing difficult. Keeping writing casual tends to keep it possible"), by not having the time to write ("Get aggressive. Steal time"), or the like. If you find a spirit that compares writing to revelation, prayer, and Zen pursuits, that might just attribute misguided communication to Mercury retrograde simpatico, then you will find much to embrace here. And you will never, never again dream of waiting for that commitment-free sabbatical in the south of France to get your writing project under way. --Jane Steinberg

Book Description

Now in paperback, the national bestseller that is breaking down the mythology behind the "writing life."

What if everything we have been taught about learning to write was wrong? In The Right to Write, Julia Cameron's most revolutionary book, the author asserts that conventional writing wisdom would have you believe in a false doctrine that stifles creativity.

With the techniques and anecdotes in The Right to Write, readers learn to make writing a natural, intensely personal part of life. Cameron's instruction and examples include the details of the writing processes she uses to create her own bestselling books. She makes writing a playful and realistic as well as a reflective event. Anyone jumping into the writing life for the first time and those already living it will discover the art of writing is never the same after reading The Right to Write.

Customer Reviews:

Offers some great kick-in-the-pants tips.......2007-10-18

I haven't been able to get into Julia's other books. I often feel very uncreative when I try to work through them. But I like this book as it seems to be telling me just what I need to hear right now. The chapter on Bad Writing and The Time Lie were especially helpful in getting me going. I like that the chapters are short and when I'm done I feel like writing. I don't do the activities in the book and instead go straight to the projects I'm working on.

Another good resource with similar tips and inspiration is Heather Seller's books Page by Page and Chapter by Chapter.

Indulge yourself.......2007-08-13

Julia Cameron's work is always engaging and this book is no exception. `The Right to Write' is written with beauty and eloquence and would make the perfect companion for any would be writer who struggles with making a start or trusting in their own abilities to bring their work to completion.

With many years as a published writer, Julia's experience and candour gives the reader insights into her own writing life that are inspiring and profound. She takes the budding writer by the hand, and through carefully selected exercises, guides her to overcome resistance and start producing results. Julia turns the experience into something to be cherished, not feared, and the results can be extremely gratifying. If you are in love with the idea of writing and desire to deepen your relationship even more, then this book is for you. Indulge yourself!

here's a book to buy and not borrow..........2007-06-05

...because the writing exercises are good and wonderful to do over and over again. This is not Julia Cameron's best-known book, but it is one of my favorites. As in many of her other books, her style is engaging and intensely readable. But what really stands out to me in this book are the wonderful writing exercises. When I first read the book, I was in a habit of reading about writing, and not in a writing habit. But I turned the corners down on the pages that had writing exercises. Now I go back to those pages and do the exercises, which are fun and useful. There is one that talks about how any mood is a good mood for writing, and encourages exploration of different moods. Another exercise describes the physicality and rhythm of writing and encourages the process of combining walking into the writing life. I recommend this book highly. Inspiration is an overused word, but this book is inspirational.

Best Writing Inspiration Book.......2007-05-15

I have read this book several times and just pulled it off my shelf again yesterday. This is a great inspiration book for writing. When I'm dragging in my work, or having a long bout of feeling uninspired and useless as a writer, I open this book.

Sometimes it's easy to get off track, to write only with the consideration of what others are going to think, or only to get published. For me, that's a death knell to my inspiration. This book has never failed to lift my spirits and remind me of the joys and benefits for *me* that come from what I write and the writing process itself.

Wonderful.......2007-02-15

I completely love Julia Cameron's approach to creativity. She is so practical and helpful in conveying spiritual principles in the most down to earth and usable ways. It is beautiful and fascinating to me that her techniques are equally applicable to every form of creativity. I particularly enjoy the exercises she suggests that mean you not only read about improved expression but you get to experience it directly.

If you have any aspirations to be a writer then this book is a must.

The Right to Write: An Invitation and Initiation Into the Writing Life

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The Right to Write: An Invitation and Initiation Into the Writing Life

Manufacturer: Jeremy P. Tarcher/Putnam
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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The Right to Write: An Invitation and Initiation into the Writing Life
Julia Cameron
Manufacturer: J P Tarcher
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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The Right to Write: An Invitation and Initiation into the Writing Life
Julia Cameron
Manufacturer: J P Tarcher
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Book Description

The revered author of books for all ages, from Bread and Jam for Frances to Turtle Diary, gives the literary performance of a lifetime in this taut psychological thriller about a boy who tries desperately to stop failing. Things are already looking a little funny to Nick Hartley after he loses yet another fight with Harry Buncher--and gets his head bashed into a wall in the bargain. So he is less confused than he ordinarily would when he meets Moe Nagic, a homeless man with a puzzle and a secret to sell. Moe offers Nick a way to visit Trokeville, the world that exists at the edge of the picture puzzle. Nick has to go there, if he's ever going to change the way his life is going. But he soon discovers the devastating danger of the journey: His mind could leave him stranded there, with no way of returning! Written with the power and precision of a great author, The Trokeville Way is a provocative masterpiece for our time.

Customer Reviews:

Good for ages 10-18.......2004-11-26

Wondeful.The book the trokeville way is funny suspenseful and realistic when he is outside in the real world. If you had noticed I called this paragraph good for ages 10-18. This is because they use mature words and swear. But other than that the trokeville way is a extrordinary book.

There's Moe Nagic left.......2004-04-22

When a young boy takes a bang to his head after getting into a fight, he meets a tramp, sitting on the road. The tramp, (Moe Nagic), sells a jigsaw puzzle to the boy. Moe explains how the puzzle can come alive, and how you can visit the land of Troke. Now it is up to Stevie, to visit the old brudge, and follow the path, that leads to Trokeville.

Trokeville is the bridge to Fremder's terrifying 'otherness'.......1999-09-10

With no US company willing to publish an adult book by Hoban, it has become increasingly difficult to follow the path of his creative wanderings. With each book he seems to proceed further, but as to the destination of that motion, who can say? After Hoban's `The Medusa Frequency' it seems we have a long space of blackness before `Fremder' turns up, only published in the UK. But before `Fremder', he apparently wrote the children's book 'Trokeville' which along with Robert O'Brien's Silver Crown is probably one of the most disturbing books I have read in the genre. Of course, Hoban admits that children need to be challenged, and he really doesn't pull any punches with Trokeville. In a sense, this harkens back to `Mouse and his Child' which he did not write for children, but became marketed as a children's book. To me at least, `Trokeville' also reads like a book Hoban simply found in his head, and which subsequently was marketed for kids. People who do not understand Hoban (such as the review provided by Amazon that compares `Trokeville' to `The Princess Bride') will mistake `Trokeville' as simply a very dingy fantasy with a lot of humor that doesn't work, but a reading of anything Hoban has written since (and including) Riddley Walker will give firm evidence that this is not the case. Hoban is once again writing about consciousness and the consciousness that lies outside of the realms of the limited consensus of reality. He is writing about fear, and the whole duality of beauty emerging out of fear that he described so wonderfully in the `Medusa Frequency'. I do not know if this is really a very good book for kids, yet here is this danger of underestimating children (or teens). I have given the book a four star rating because that is where it stands with me, the feeling being one of an intermediate step between his serious books. If you are a Hoban fan this is definitley worth a read, especially at the cheap domestic price. For those who don't know anything about Hoban, find `Mouse and his Child' if you can (for young readers--though I like it too) or any of his adult books which I prefer to `Trokeville'.

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The Trokeville Way Reading Group Guide
Russell Hoban
Manufacturer: Alfred A. Knopf
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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