It is a book that stands to make a difference. This impassioned book not only dissects the problems, but makes pointed, informed recommendations for change. We encounter them every day, for they do jobs essential to the American economy. Shipler exposes the interlocking problems by taking us into the sorrowful, infuriating, courageous lives of the poor-white and black, Asian and Latino, citizens and immigrants. But their version of the American Dream is a nightmare: low-paying, dead-end jobs the profound failure of government to improve upon decaying housing, health care, and education the failure of families to break the patterns of child abuse and substance abuse. Shipler makes clear in this powerful, humane study, the invisible poor are engaged in the activity most respected in American ideology-hard, honest work. Nonetheless, by exposing the wretched condition of these invisible Americans, he has performed a noble and badly needed service.' The San Francisco Chronicle reviewer wrote, 'Shipler is informative, sometimes outraged, and often eloquent in rendering the working poor visible', but also noted that 'the author appears to hope for good will from above, within the system, to carry out his suggestions.From the author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Arab and Jew, an intimate portrait unfolds of working American families struggling against insurmountable odds to escape poverty.

Shipler avoids saying anything too controversial and as a result his book seems unlikely to change minds on either the left or the right. . Shipler makes clear in this powerful, humane study, the invisib le poor are engaged in the activity most respected in American ideology-ha rd. The contractors pay employees below the minimum wage to work in low quality sweatshops for hours, exceeding the legal limit. One case is illustrated by clothing companies who hire contractors that hire illegal immigrants. Shipler explores some flaws of comparative advantages. Throughout the book, the author describes numerous economic issues preventing the working poor from escaping poverty.

Using their lives as examples, he illustrates the struggles the working poor face while attempting to escape poverty. NATIONAL BESTSELLER - From the author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Arab and Jew, an intimate portrait unfolds of working American families struggling. From personal interviews and research, Shipler presents in this book anecdotes and life stories of individuals considered the working poor. The Working Poor: Invisible in America is a 2004 book written by Pulitzer Prize-winner David K. The Rights of the People: How Our Search for Safety Invades Our Liberties A Country of Strangers: Blacks and Whites in America

The working poor by david k shipler