Kate's Reading Project Blog

(I created this literary criticism essay, which focuses on the author's effect on the reading experience.  Enjoy!) In the Pulitzer Prize-winning non-fiction novel Evicted, the author creates a new kind of book by exploring a topic in a journalistic style.  Therefore, Matthew Desmond’s style and creativity in the making of Evicted leads to a reading experience unlike any other. First, Desmond begins the novel with a prologue, saying, “Jori and his cousin were cutting up, tossing snowballs at passing cars” (Desmond 1).   Similarly to a fiction novel, Desmond continues to describe the life of the “characters”, who are actually real people. By writing the majority of the book as if it was a fictional story, Desmond is able to portray factual information in an entertaining and effective manner.  This is especially difficult given the subject matter, which is the poverty crisis occurring in Milwaukee. However, Desmond turns this information into a Pulitz...

As I continue reading Evicted , by Matthew Desmond, I’m beginning to discover more and more social issues arising.  Typically, Desmond only uses a moderate amount of dialogue, but after several pages of arguing between two residents, Arleen and Crystal, Arleen yells, “You don’t know what it’s like to have your father molest you and your mother not care about it!” (Desmond 194).  Crystal then responds, “Yes, I do! I know exactly what that’s like ‘cause my stepfather molested me when I was just a little girl, and that’s why they sent me to foster care” (Desmond 194). After this, Arleen and Crystal (momentarily) overcome their differences and forgive each other.  While it was initially difficult for me to read the dialogue that preceded these statements because of the grammatical errors (improper English), Desmond does an excellent job of portraying human suffering, which is something I'm going to be talking about in my next blog post (so stay tuned!)  Of course...

While reading Evicted , by Matthew Desmond, I began noticing the lack of violence that was being described throughout the book.  Of course, there were mentions of shouting, cursing, and crime rates, but true violence was yet to be discussed over halfway through the novel. However, when Desmond began discussing the struggles that black single mothers face, it brought up the topic of domestic violence in poverty-ridden areas.  For example, it states, “The year the police called Sherrena (the landlord), Wisconsin saw more than one victim per week murdered by a current or former romantic partner or relative” (Desmond 192).  After providing a few more statistics (geared toward poverty-ridden areas and black mothers specifically), Desmond describes a circumstance typically seen by victims of domestic violence who rent in impoverished areas of Milwaukee.   In Evicted, a woman named Trisha’s abuse is described.  After several 911 calls are made becau...