Men Without Work: America's Invisible Crisis by Nicholas Eberstadt
Astonishing Statistic
The points in this little book are so alarming, that I re-read the book to better understand them. On my first read, I did not fully comprehend an astonishing point the author makes (p.180):
"...For every prime-age man who is out of a job and looking for one there are three others who are neither working or looking for work."
We like "fact based" analysis
What--this can't be! At first, I thought I had misunderstood the author--but I had not. Even after adjusting for men taking training, there are 2.5 men not looking for work for every one who is. The author points out the astonishing change in work demographics as a "revolutionary change in male attitudes toward work and dependence in postwar America."
I happened to see this little tome at my local library. I found MEN WITHOUT WORK to be a well-written book, which calls attention to an alarming problem in America. The author's charts are very helpful, although the acronyms were a little consuing for me at times.
I especially liked the latter part of the book, where two different perspectives are offered--one from a conservative, and one from a progressive.
REASONS TO READ THIS BOOK
- Well-written & well-argued
- The author writes in an even-handed, charitable way.
- Helpful charts illustrate the key points
- Inclusion of differing views at end
We just skimmed the book
REASONS TO SKIP THIS BOOK
- Just a small amount of time given to the critique from Bernstein.
- I would have liked to see a more robust discussion of the points mentioned in the "opposing view" sections.
So all in all, I found MEN WITHOUT WORK to be a solid introduction to this topic. It's not an exhaustive work, but lays out the main points well. Prior to reading this book, I had no idea of the amazing change in work demographics.
