Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City - Tapa dura

This is an extraordinary and crucial piece of work. Read it. Please, read it (Adrian Nicole LeBlanc, author of RANDOM FAMILY)

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, and author of BOWLING ALONE and OUR KIDS)

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)

A monumental and vivid study of urban poverty ... Evicted demands attention. It shines a klieg light on a dark corner of the American experience (Ed Caesar Sunday Times)

An intimate portrait of what it's like to be powerless in the world's superpower ... Evicted shows how the smallest event can rip through poor lives, sending them spinning out of control... To British eyes, the narrative reads like a dispatch from the near-future. (Aditya Chakrabortty Guardian)

Astonishing ... Desmond has set a new standard for reporting on poverty (Barbara Ehrenreich Herald)

A tale of tragedy... We, in Britain, are taking the US' path. From where do you think the UK coalition government of 2010 got the idea of sanctions? To where do you think the Conservative government of 2015 now looks for new ideas? (Danny Dorling Times Higher Education)

Heartbreaking... Desmond's acute observational skills, his facility with reported dialogue and his ability to wrench chaotic stories into clear prose make EVICTED a vivid, if sometimes gruelling, read... with UK house prices unaffordable, a dearth of council housing and a Government committed to austerity, EVICTED serves as a warning as to what happens when a society refuses to recognise the fundamental human right to shelter (Keith Kahn-Harris Independent)

A remarkable ethnography ... [Desmond] has a novelist's eye for the telling detail and a keen ear for dialogue ... This is a significant literary achievement, as well as a feat of reporting underpinned by statistical labour (Jonathan Derbyshire Financial Times)

For the two or three weeks I was reading the book, it formed my topic of conversation with friends, and at night, when I went to sleep, it filled my thoughts ... It makes you aware of how complicated the webs holding you up are. (Benjamin Markovits New Statesman)