Title: Rich Girl Down With The Poor Folks
Review: This book is a sobering study of the children that many Americans write-off as lost causes. Toth is realistic about these kids' likelihood of making it, but her very human portrayal of them leaves room for hope, and she provides dignity to her subjects even when they are at their worst. I would have liked a little more analysis of the systemic issues of race and class that determined much of the kids' lives before they were even born. At times Toth's tone stinks of noblesse oblige, and somehow her status of white/liberal/middle-class/college girl shines through in every word without ever actually being addressed. Nevertheless, I am always pleased when someone gives the underrepresented a voice, and Toth does just that.
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