“A World Ruled by Scarcity”: Vision 2020 Brown Bags and Books Discussion. Last month’s Brown Bags and Books group discussed Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich. She knows what it’s like to be a maid. In her book Nickel and Dimed, Ehrenreich “inhabited” several low paying, hard-working jobs including working as a maid in an effort to understand the challenges of surviving on low wage work. Unlike Stephanie Land, author of the book Maid: Hard Work, Low Pay and a Mother’s Will to Survive, Ehrenreich knew that she could go back to her “far-more-comfortable life as a writer.” Stephanie cannot. Instead, she struggles to provide a safe home for her daughter while surviving on “bits of public assistance” and the low wages of a maid. Her book describes the years she worked in low-paying domestic work. Ehrenreich who wrote the forward to Land’s book, points out that “Stephanie’s world is ruled by scarcity.” Join a discussion of Maid: Hard Work, Low Pay and a Mother’s Will to Survive on Wednesday, September 18th at Wautoma Public Library from 12:30-1:30pm or at Coloma Public Library, Thursday September 19th from 6-7 p.m. Copies of the book are available for check out at the Wautoma Library, 410 West Main Street in Wautoma and the Coloma Public Library, 155 North Front St. in Coloma. Even if you have not read the book, please join us for coffee and conversation about the challenges that face struggling individuals and families. If you cannot come in person, discussion questions will be posted on the group’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/groups/313550852571961/ . “Brown Bags and Books” is a project of Waushara County’s Vision 2020 initiative, offering citizens an opportunity to learn about poverty and help create solutions.
