Review by Choice Review
Wilkinson (emer., Univ. of Nottingham Medical School, UK) and Pickett (epidemiology, Univ. of York, UK) make the general point that inequality, which they define as vast differences in income between the rich and the poor within the same society, is the cause of just about every social problem from infant mortality rate to personal happiness. Readers with scant knowledge of issues like stratification, poverty, or health disparities will find the discussions of correlations between such variables as pregnancy to be enlightening. For those who know something of social science, the book will seem flawed. The main fault is the attempt to generalize so broadly; it is as if the authors selected their thesis and then made sure that every study cited and every correlation presented supported it. Some of their assertions are weak, such as the argument that greater equality can stave off global warming. They confuse such terms as "cause" and "correlation." Their frequent reliance on animal studies to support a conclusion about human behavior is not only difficult to accept--as epidemiologists, they should know better. Summing Up: Recommended. General readers, or for graduate students who can spot the flaws in the arguments. C. Apt South Carolina State University
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Wilkinson and Pickett make an eloquent case that the income gap between a nation's richest and poorest is the most powerful indicator of a functioning and healthy society. Amid the statistics that support their argument (increasing income disparity sees corresponding spikes in homicide, obesity, drug use, mental illness, anxiety, teenage pregnancies, high school dropouts-even incidents of playground bullying), the authors take an empathetic view of our ability to see beyond self-interest. While there are shades of Darwinism in the human hunt for status, there is evidence that the human brain-with its distinctively large neocortex-evolved the way it has because we were designed to be attentive to, depend on, and be depended on by others. Wilkinson and Pickett do not advocate one way or the other to close the equality gap. Government redistribution of wealth and market forces that create wealth can be equally effective, and the authors provide examples of both. How societies achieve equality, they argue, is less important than achieving it in the first place. Felicitous prose and fascinating findings make this essential reading. (Jan.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review
Popular wisdom would tell us that poverty is the breeding ground for many of society's ills. But British academics Wilkinson (emeritus, Univ. of Nottingham Medical Sch.) and Pickett (senior lecturer, Univ. of York) argue otherwise. They've woven together a great deal of international research to show that inequality, not poverty per se, is what contributes most to social problems. The authors not only compare data from a range of countries but also gather data from all 50 states to verify that relationships that exist on a national level also exist on a more local scale. The first element examined is trust as a measure of community life and social relations. Once it is established that people in unequal societies don't trust one another, the stage is set to examine a host of other dystopian problems from mental health to teenage births to social mobility. VERDICT In this fascinating sociological study, the authors do an excellent job of presenting the research, analyzing nuances, and offering policy suggestions for creating more equal and sustainable societies. For all readers, specialized or not, with an interest in understanding the dynamics today between economic and social conditions.-Carol J. Elsen, Univ. of Wisconsin-Whitewater Lib. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Predatory capitalism makes some of us poor and some of us rich, of course, but it also makes most of us sick, crime-ridden and mador so two British social scientists contend. In a scholarly work that is already exciting widespread discussion outside the academy, Wilkinson (Univ. of Nottingham Medical School) and Pickett (Univ. of York) show that by nearly every measure of the quality of life, societies with high income inequality fare more poorly than those with a more even distribution of wealth. In the United States, writes former labor secretary Robert Reich in the foreword, the top one percent of earners has tripled its share of the economy since 1980when, not coincidentally, Ronald Reagan came to power and began to deregulate everything. Reich scorns the thought that the Obama administration should be branded socialist for wanting to return some social controls to 1980 and even 1990 levels. Wilkinson and Pickett are measured and even cautious in advancing their interpretations of the data, which are full of curiosities. In unequal countries, for instance, women suffer from greater levels of certain kinds of mental illness than do men, and some diseasesparticularly heart-related illnesses and obesityseem strongly correlated to disparities in wealth distribution. Everywhere, the links between legalized robbery and other kinds of crime are strong. The authors relate much of the problem to the overall phenomenon of anxietyperhaps not the most scientific of diagnostic words, but one that does the job. Ultimately, they urge a return to the concept that liberty and equality are connectedthe idea that they are not "seems to have emerged during the Cold War." A book full of dangerous ideas and useful statistics, all worthy of attention, discussion and action. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
