Reseñas proporcionadas por Syndetics

CHOICE Review

An ethnographic study by two sociologists of the lives of low-income, largely unemployed, teenagers in four cities, presented in the words of their autobiographical statements and in the authors' summaries of these statements and observations on their lives. One chapter is devoted to youth who manage to achieve despite their situational handicaps. Others discuss work, life on the street, prostitution, ``crews'' (the successors to gangs), pregnancy and youthful motherhood, and adult mentors. The authors conclude that it is the extent and quality of this mentorship that make the difference between achievement and failure for these youths. The final chapter points out the increasing restriction of opportunity for young people because of the lack of legitimate employment opportunities. The authors argue that past experience with youth employment training programs shows that their continuation and expansion would be beneficial. Adds little to the extensive ethnographic literature on the lives of the poor, such as Todd Gitlin and Nanci Hollander's Uptown (CH, Dec '70), Ulf Hannerz's Soulside (CH, Sept '70), and Elliott Liebow's Tally's Corner (CH, Apr '68, p. 170). No index or bibliography, but there is an informative appendix about the research process. Upper-division undergraduates and above.-E. Feingold, University of Michigan