The Pearl

First off, sorry for the lateness of the post. I've had a hard time with not recommended week. I know I've read many stinkers over the years, but I must have blocked them from my mind because I can't remember many of the titles. I usually end up abandoning most books I hate long before the end. My other problem this week is that my opinion of some books often changes over time. For example, my opinion of the snooker book has improved since I read it because at least it is a book that has stayed with me and left me with things to think about. The Pearl is a book I had to read for sophomore English class and is the book I have always carried around as the example of a book I hated. I wanted to reread it before posting to see if my opinion has changed but didn't get around to it. I remember hating The Pearl because it was boring and bleak. Kino is a poor fisherman and pearl diver who finds The Pearl of the World. He hopes to use it to improve his family's lot, but it leads to disaster for his family instead. The book could be called a parable and I tend to hate the lack of subtlety that suggests. I also remember being confused by the message it was trying to convey. It could have been a story about greed, but the things Kino wanted were so modest and universal, such as the dream of educating his son. I would definitely hesitate to take advice from my sixteen year old self but if you want to read Steinbeck, stick with The Grapes of Wrath or East of Eden.

The Working Poor

According to the American Dream mythology, if you work hard you can support yourself and your family. David Shipler documents the fallacy of this myth through his profiles of some of America's working poor. The strength of this book is its balance in showing how many factors--including both societal factors and personal choices--contribute to working class poverty and, in turn, can lead to possible solutions. Through the individual stories of all varieties of the working poor (urban families, migrant workers, etc.), Shipler shows the interconnection of various factors that lead individuals into poverty and prevent them from working themselves out from under it. Affordable, safe housing, reliable transportation (public and otherwise), preventative health care, affordable and reliable childcare, the public educational system, family support, basic parenting skills--a deficiency in any of these areas can easily lead to a downward spiral that can affect every other area as well. And while in many cases poor choices by individuals contribute to the cycle, Shipler explains that the middle class may make the same choices but they are less devastating because they have a support system that includes family, education, knowledge of resources, and opportunities, that the working poor do not. I found this to be a very powerful book that deserves to be read by people of all backgrounds.