Comments (57)

Evicted

Poverty and Profit in the American City
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Feb 20, 2024HPL_Teen_Volunteer1 rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Central Theme: The book delves into the harsh realities of poverty and eviction in the United States, specifically focusing on low-income families in Milwaukee. Desmond, a sociologist, spent years living alongside these families,…
Jul 11, 2023Barium rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
This is a deeply disturbing book that changed the way I think about poverty, housing, and home ownership. The author did extensive research, including living in a ghetto and a trailer park, to write detailed histories and statistical…
Oct 08, 2021pacl_teens rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
"Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City is the story of the American eviction epidemic told by Sociology Professor Matthew Desmond of Princeton University. The professor studied the crisis through the stories of eight families…
May 01, 2021lmustafa92 rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
What an amazing book. Well rounded ethnography into the lifecycle of poverty. Enjoyed this way more than I thought I would - a personalized account for the many ways poverty effects every aspect of American life, and the dependency between…
Jan 23, 2021lilypad_1 rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Eye opening account of renting while poor. It has been awhile since I have lived in a rental, I have never tried to do it on welfare, with kids, having been evicted because husband didn't pay rent before beating me up and damaging property…
Jan 16, 2021ArapahoeJennieB rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
A devastating but necessary exploration and examination of housing and the cycle of poverty that keeps our poorest citizens continually poor and oftentimes unhoused. It also examines the intersections of poverty, eviction and race. A very…
Nov 09, 2020yvettedun rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Extremely eye opening. Devastating read. It is a testament to the ravages of untethered capitalism. I also recommend "Incarceration Nation". Another eye opener.
Oct 28, 2020mattfromthecity rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
As compelling and haunting as it is heartbreaking, this one will stick with you for a little while
Oct 24, 2019MaxCW26 rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Great book. Sad subject matter that is excellently researched and written about. A must read on a problem that is only growing in America.
Aug 13, 2019wiildsage rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Matthew Desmond's "Evicted" is, honest to God, probably my new favorite book. It somehow manages to be emotionally gripping (definitely cried a few times), unflinchingly factual, and cautiously hopeful all at the same time. It's so, so…
Jul 29, 2019
I was surprised when I read Matthew Desmond’s nonfiction novel, Evicted. Desmond, a sociologist, followed eight families in Milwaukee, Wisconsin as they struggled with poverty and eviction. I really enjoyed the way in which Desmond…
Jun 03, 2019
I read this book on the recommendation from the Library Director, and it is wonderful! It really sheds light on the housing crisis in America (who can afford rent these days, anyway?), and gives a voice to those who cannot afford it.…
Apr 21, 2019seanreinhart rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
🏘️📚🌧 Housing is a basic human need. It irrevocably shapes our lives and our destinies. It also can be a lucrative and, at times, cruel and devastating business. This landmark nonfiction work tells eight stories of families who were…
Mar 27, 2019IndyPL_LoriO_Archive rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
This heartbreaking and hard to put down book is an eye-opening look into the affordable housing crisis affecting so many lives today. I particularly enjoyed the author’s ability to tell the stories of his subjects without making himself a…
Feb 23, 2019DavidSpencer99 rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
I found this book both enlightening and frustrating. Blending respectable authorial skills with awesome first-hand observation data, Desmond exposes the raw and painful lives of Milwaukee residents who can barely afford their rent. These…
Dec 29, 2018
On Barack Obama's Top Books of 2017
Dec 20, 2018
The hardest part about reading Evicted was coming to the realization that, more often than not, both sides, tenants and landlords, are only doing what is best for themselves financially, socially, or emotionally. In each of the followed…
Dec 04, 2018swheeler89 rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
Honest and raw, Desmond holds nothing back looking at both sides of a the housing crisis. I greatly enjoyed this read. It compliments nicely with Just Mercy.
Oct 16, 2018
The reporting is almost as amazing as the findings. Eye-opening if this is not your life.
Aug 28, 2018
Evicted by Matthew Desmond is the 2019 Read Brave nonfiction selection. A 2017 Pulitzer-Prize-winning novel, it follows eight Milwaukee families struggling to pay their rent around the 2008 financial crisis.
May 26, 2018Lchagan rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Powerful and compelling book. Sympathetic, but clear-eyed where it would be easy to devolve into sentimentality. The author shows how a series of poor decisions can leave people behind the proverbial eight ball, particularly in the…
May 14, 2018scribby rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
This reads like a novel, but be warned. It is not the product of the author’s imagination. Made of victim’s stories in Milwaukee (“I feel dirty,” lamented the author, “collecting these stories and hardships like so many trophies.”) it…
May 03, 2018
This Pulitzer prize winner book was filled with stories of the desperate resilience of people against poverty and hardships in the poorest neighborhoods of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. This was not an easy book to read. It was a depressingly…
May 02, 2018jdellern rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
Compelling story! 5 STAR!
Apr 29, 2018agoldsby rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
I hope readers come away understanding that poor people aren't poor because they don't want to work hard. One of the many things I took away from reading this is "Poverty could pile on; living it often meant steering through gnarled…