An important American story
934188
Streetchild is an incredible and engaging first person narrative about one man's extraordinary journey in dealing with a life on the streets as a young boy, addiction and his own internalized homophobia. The book allowed me to delve deep into Justin's perspective and experience. This is a very compelling story told in what I would consider an easy, yet very involving, read. I very much respect the way Justin lays out some very grim realities and truths in an un-sensationalized, matter-of-fact manner. There's no preaching or moralizing - it's the facts, the truth, and his perspective - I really appreciated that! I found Justin's honesty about the setbacks he experiences after first pulling it together very real and true. His self examination of his own difficulties with being gay and thinking about love, friendship and family are remarkable in their affirmation of the human spirit. It is wonderful to read how much humanity exists even in the exploitative and difficult environments he found himself in. Reading how Justin's past continues to weave itself through the present, choices that are difficult, falling and getting it back together, and developing a philosophy that provides a framework to embrace it all, is what makes this book inspiring and a joyful read.

This is an important story that needs telling and reading. It is the experience of far too many youth, coming from abusive homes and provided little support or understanding of who they are and how to address the pain in their lives. Justin doesn't particularly endorse any solutions or how-tos -- instead the book allows us to see a reality that is too often ignored or pushed into the background. That is, I believe,  the incredible value of this book and what makes it so accessible. Draw your own conclusions! I trust that Justin's book, and his work in promoting it, will draw necessary attention to the plight of youth living similar experiences today and help us, as a society, continue to face and address these realities. I highly recommend this book - read it!
882020
This is a very important story and should be told "so that we don't forget."  The use of the two narrators was most effective.
4631863
The film is an important challenge to the American psyche, as it comes across as something of a right-wing conspiracy theory, yet it's been endorsed by the Academy and numerous other liberal organizations who've concluded - perhaps in more realistic terms - the foundations of our nation's most significant liberties are failing. It's hard to watch - but a well-made documentary and extremely significant in the context of our brave new world.
1161439
A great story of a part of the American experience.
This tells the story of the orphans who were sent west to be useful labor.
The author develops a novel setting and populates it with true-to-life accounts.
4918113
This is a story that was important to tell and must be heard. It gives us greater awareness of the state of science in the world and the experience of Black Americans for the last century and beyond.

Not only is it an important story, but it's also beautifully told with a sharp clarity on all the powerful, human moments most closely related to this amazing piece of scientific and American history.
4475384
Charlotte Brooks, a fellow member of the History Department of Baruch College/CUNY, has given us a very important and very well written book. It has, as its center the development of the Chinese/Chinese American immigrant community in San Francisco and the Japanese/Japanese American community in LA. It traces the evolution of these communities over the course of the late 19th and the twentieth centuries. While an academic book, it is jargon-free and very accessible. The author shows us how much she has done and how much she knows without getting her ego or her personal poltics get in the way. The story she tells is a sober one of deep discrimnation and suprising alliances in the development of the patterns of  discrimination housing in California. Yet it is also the story of hope and change. We see how Asian Americans win a place for themselves, bit by painful bit, in this pivotal state that faces the Pacific and East Asia.

One comes away knowing much more and thanking the author for her gift of knowledge and her ability to tell us this story in a  fashion that is dramatic and yet not histrionic.

All those interested in American history and in Asian American studies and in the history of US urban development should read this fine and timely book.
207813
This is a story that will make you proud to be an American.  It's an inspiring saga about the courage and caring of people who lived under very difficult conditions, and the animals who shared their lives.
546864
i would of given it more stars as it was a moving story but written in an unmoving way.  the importance of this story is vital and should be mandatory reading for our youth.
809565
This is a true story that every American should read.  A remarkable story of courage and friendship.
1414139
Tremendous insight into a very real problem in America.  This is an important work, but it is also an "enjoyable" read, even while dealing with less than enjoyable issues such as eviction, poverty, ineffective systems that aren't helping the issue, etc.
4432123
I almost gave this 4 stars because the writing style is a little difficult to read but decided that it is a story that is too important not to earn 5.  This is the "other side" of the story of Pocahontas that everyone should be required to read.  I believe there are always at least two sides to any story and this one should not be missed.  I also think that this "version of the story" is both believable and very sad.  Read it and weep... a look at our country and history thorough native American's eyes.
4385044
This is a story of how the Igorrotes of the Philippines were exploited for the pleasure of the American public.  It is a story that I had never heard before. It shows how every generation since the founding of America has found the need to exploit a minority, be it African Americans,  Native Americans, people with disabilities, mail order brides, etc.  In this case, bringing natives from another country to America.  The story itself is intriguing,  but sad. The natives were manipulated and the American government was also, in order to satisfy the greed of a few men.
3305054
It was a moving story; many people are denying that these things happened in history.  We need to be constantly reminded
that this can happen to any nation.  Even now things are happenning in our United States that are sad beyone measure.
2446510
This book tells a very important story that is valuable to everyone. It is well written.
1887728
Easy to read, well told, well researched story of a powerful moment in U.S. history.  It's a time many of us don't properly remember or celebrate.
1736154
Zinn captures the authentic voices of history in this much-maligned text, much-maligned that is by a former Indiana governor who would rather keep the rich rich and the poor poor than look at how the vast majority live and then address human needs.  While sources may be a bit thin on credible substantiation, Zinn still tells the most important story of U.S. history -- the story of everyone, the uneducated, the poor, the marginalized included.  The privileged and the wealthy have always looked out for their own.  Today's far-right, pretend-your-decisions-are-morally-even-biblically-based are not new to American life.
29483
The Battle of Blair Mountain tells one story in the long history of American labor unions. It is a story that few Americans know, or were aware of even at the time that the events occurred. It shines a bright light on the struggle of the United Mine Workers to organize mine workers in West Virginia, in the face of opposition from an ownership concerned only with maximizing their profits. It tells how mine owners used their political clout, the desperation caused by the Great Depression, hired "detectives" and the fear raised by the rise of Communism in Europe, to disenfranchise and defeat union organizers and members. It illustrates clearly the difficulty in maintaining individual rights and protections for laborers when wealthy corporate interests collude with weak and often corrupt local government officials.

As well as being an important story, this is a well-written and extremely interesting book. There is enough background provided to provide the reader with an understanding of how such a story could be left out of most history textbooks, and yet the narrative isn't bogged down by asides or details. It is very readable and I recommend it highly.