America's Struggle Against Poverty in the Twentieth Century
[Patterson's] perspective on poverty continues to be an influential one in the debate about which policies help and which hurt the poor ... Readers will be reminded of many things they had forgotten, will learn some things they never knew, and will be provoked to new questions. (Herbert SteinFortune)A splendid introduction to and review of the attitudes in the United States toward the poor and of efforts to ameliorate their condition...Patterson treats his subject with verve, energy, and considerable style...No one with any interest in the subject can afford to ignore it. (Daniel J. LeabPolitical Science Quarterly)