Before and After Zachariah, by Fern Kupfer

Before and After Zachariah by Fern Kupfer
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

When Fern and Joseph Kupfer decided to have a second child, they had no idea how that decision would affect their lives, as well as that of their daughter, Gaby. In Before and After ZachariahBefore and After Zachariah, author Fern Kupfer describes Zachariah's failure to accomplish even the simplest tasks: walking, sitting, crawling, even holding his head up.

As an infant, Zachariah was breath-takingly beautiful: long lashes, blond hair. The book's cover shows a sleeping baby (Zach) with his parents and older sister. However, it soon because obvious that he was severely developmentally delayed. At one point, Joe was visiting his mother, who was dying of cancer, when Fern called after a visit to a hospital with Zach; the doctors where baffled by what was causing Zach's problems. Fern was an emotional wreck over the lack of a diagnosis. Fern describes the phone call with Joe as the worse case scenario, likening it to an over-turned boat: who do you save, your mother or your wife?

The couple go from doctor to doctor, parent-meetings, groups meant to help developmentally delayed children, any place that offers a shred of hope, to no avail. In the end, they place Zach in an attempt to save their own lives as well as Gaby's.

I had originally read Before and After Zachariah years ago, then reread it several years ago, then rereading again. The newer copy of the book has two epilogues. The first was written several years after the book first came out, then a second one in 1998. The epilogues tie up the loose ends, telling what eventually happened to Zachariah, to her marriage to Joseph, to Gaby, and how Zachariah's live affected all off them, as well as their extended family and friends.

Before and After Zachariah is a good read, and a book that should be read. For the reader who has never had experience with a child or sibling with developmental delays, this will give insight to one family's struggles, while those readers with this experience will find themselves nodding, thinking yes, yes, that's it exactly! If you're wondering what non-fiction book to check out, this one gets my vote.

View all my reviews

Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America, by Barbara Ehrenreich

Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America by Barbara Ehrenreich
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

While many Americans consider the U.S. to be a classless society, wanting to believe that one merely has to work harder to leave poverty for the ranks of the rich, this is not always the case. Much of the twentieth century, as well as the twenty-first thus far, has seen a definite class-based society, consisting of working class, middle class, and the rich. On either end are the working-poor and the ultra-rich, but these, too, fit into the class-based society.

In Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting by in America, Barbara Ehrenreich explores how those in the working class get by (or not).

When Barbara began her trek into research for this book (1998) "it took, on average nationwide, an hourly wage of $8.89 to afford a one bedroom apartment," according to the National Coalition for the Homeless. Keep in mind, the federal minimum wage is $7.25 hour, and hasn't budged since 2009 (https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/30/business/minimum-wage-2021-states/index.html). To afford a larger apartment or a house, especially in 2025, would take quite a bit more.

There are several ways that one could research Nickel and Dimed: book research (good enough for possibly a term paper or for background from years earlier); interviewing those who work at menial jobs (better); or, the way Ehrenreich worked: by deciding "to get out there and get my hands dirty (p.4)."

During her research time (1998-2000), Ehrenreich worked as a waitress in Florida, a house cleaner and nursing-home aid in Maine, worked as a Wal-Mart associate in Minnesota, all as a way to see what menial, low-paid workers go through to put a roof over their heads, pay their utilities, and food on their tables. While she could have bailed at any time, heading back to her comfortable home and life-style, she stayed the course and gives a good, true glimpse on what the working-class goes through to get by.

One thing that I found disconcerting was that yes, she could have bailed at any time, that she was playing the part of someone eking out a living on minimum wages. But the flip side is that she was able to pick up the nuances of what a low-wage worker goes through from first-hand knowledge, as well as through interviewing her coworkers.

I highly recommend this book. If one wants to get a good beginning knowledge on what a minimum wage worker goes through, Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting by in America is a great place to start.

View all my reviews