Invisible Child: Poverty, Survival, and Hope in an American City
- Downloads：8690
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-12-28 00:19:22
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Andrea Elliott
- ISBN：B08Z1HK3T8
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Reviews
Brian Candelori
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A phenomenal read！ Dasani - the main interest of this narrative - is hard to not love。 Elliott's book reminds me of A Chosen Family。 I especially found it enjoyable that a number of the places mentioned were locations I was familiar with bc of my time working in East New York。 Genuinely can't recommend this book enough if you want to learn about childhood poverty in NYC/America。 A phenomenal read！ Dasani - the main interest of this narrative - is hard to not love。 Elliott's book reminds me of A Chosen Family。 I especially found it enjoyable that a number of the places mentioned were locations I was familiar with bc of my time working in East New York。 Genuinely can't recommend this book enough if you want to learn about childhood poverty in NYC/America。 。。。more
Connie Heneghan
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Reminded me a great deal of There Are No Children Here by Alex Kotlowitz。 The author acknowledges the inspiration for the book and uses the point of view of the true victims， the children。 Dasani is an intelligent and verbal child who along with her mother allows Andrea Elliott to follow her life for 8 years from the time she is 9。
Conner Castagno
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This was a phenomenal piece of journalism。 The author follows a homeless child and her family for 8 years and gives accurate and eye opening stories of their lives in New York City。 It is not politically charged but outlines many of the governmental agencies involved in homelessness。 I learned so much。 I wanted this to be a rags to riches novel Bud that’s not realistic for most stories。 I will look at homelessness through a new lens because I read this book。
Lindsay
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This books follows a family of 10 as they navigate poverty and systematic racism in the education/foster care/housing/criminal justice systems in NYC for nearly a decade。 It is a hard read as the oppression is palatable throughout。 The complex needs of this family reinforce my wild take that basic human needs need to be met before family separation is even an option。 Highly recommend。
Christine
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Reporter follows homeless family of parents Chanel and Supreme for a number of years。 She is captivated by oldest 11yo Dasani who is bright and protectively watches over her younger siblings。 This is a heartbreaking story， and for sure， the system is broken， but as with most situations， it’s complicated。 Chanel and Supreme are drug addicts and thieves。 They have 8 kids among them。 Stories are detailed of Black kids facing criticism “for going to college and trying to be White。” Eventually Dasani Reporter follows homeless family of parents Chanel and Supreme for a number of years。 She is captivated by oldest 11yo Dasani who is bright and protectively watches over her younger siblings。 This is a heartbreaking story， and for sure， the system is broken， but as with most situations， it’s complicated。 Chanel and Supreme are drug addicts and thieves。 They have 8 kids among them。 Stories are detailed of Black kids facing criticism “for going to college and trying to be White。” Eventually Dasani gains a full scholarship to a boarding HS but feels survivor guilt for leaving her younger sibs behind。 Interesting story but repetitive and literally could have been 1/2 to ⅔ shorter than it is。 Dasani carries a singular burden among her siblings。 Chanel has vested enormous authority in Dasani。 Her confidence， agility and strength， the attributes that could Dasani from her life‘s miseries， also threaten to keep her mired in the problems that her mother cannot meet alone。 。。。more
Helen
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So much to unpack here。 Poverty， parenting， role of individual internal resources， family bonds， coming of age， roles within families， systems that fail， how we care for others and their kids， also how we fail to。 Important journalism。
Steffie Corcoran
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One of the finest works of investigative nonfiction I’ve read in years。 It reveals the degree to which multiple systems fail the poor and compound the trauma that is the root cause of so many devastating circumstances and choices。 It could easily have been twice as long and still only scratch the surface of these complicated lives。 I’ll never forget Dasani Coates。
Donna Johnson
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This one will stay with me。
Cathreen Shiucheng
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This book is really an eye opener for me as a non-American but grew up with Sesame Street， movies based in NY—believing one day I would be able to visit or even work in NY。 A dream city。 This book opens up the racial discrimination in NY， faced by people of colored and the poor。 I don’t think I would ever want to be there。 Worst place to be。 But there’s one thing I couldn’t fathom like why would poor people have so many kids where they could afford to live their life what more with kids？ There a This book is really an eye opener for me as a non-American but grew up with Sesame Street， movies based in NY—believing one day I would be able to visit or even work in NY。 A dream city。 This book opens up the racial discrimination in NY， faced by people of colored and the poor。 I don’t think I would ever want to be there。 Worst place to be。 But there’s one thing I couldn’t fathom like why would poor people have so many kids where they could afford to live their life what more with kids？ There are so many jobs one could do， but Chanel and Supreme still fall back into the drug den。 Like why？！ It also saddened me that Dasani could have a brighter future in Hershey but the damn caseworkers were jerks in informing what happened to Chanel and the family。 The poor are being marginalized and discriminated！ The system is so broken in America， unless you get the white privileges （I think now I love where I live）。What interest me if this book is the Five Percent and WU-Tang clan。 Didn’t know that these NY black hiphop bands are Muslims。 I never knew the existence of Five Percent and Nation of Islam。 Did some external reading on them。 It’s pretty interesting that the hiphop bands up north are more Muslim-centric as most of the time I only listen to Kanye West 🤭 。。。more
Roberta Havel
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The Invisible Child is surreal。 It is hard to believe that in the United States people in poverty are treated so poorly （excuse the pun） by child and family services。 I don’t want to believe it， but this book is nonfiction， not sci-fi or a mystery。 Author Andrea Elliot’s writing style is so readable that like a good fiction novel， I couldn’t put it down。 Invisible Child is a must read！
Tyler
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The social services programs in this country are a bureaucratic joke。 Everyone who thinks a bunch of lazy ppl get to live off this system and continue to vote for cutting these services should see how they are affecting millions of kids
Celine
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I never write reviews， but I just have to say- I wish I could give this book more stars。 This should be required reading for everyone in America。
Sharon
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By far one of the most authentic accounts of what poverty and structural racism looks like in a large U。S。 city， a city that I thought I knew very well。 A really important read for all of us。
Katie Bruell
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Wow。 Damn。 This book。 I am so angry at our country。 Why do we spend more money to tear families apart than it would take to support them and keep them together。 Are we really just so blind as to what it means to separate children and parents？ Are we unable to understand that this means the same thing to others as it would mean to us？ Chanel asks a woman in the court system how hard it is for her to leave her dog for a night， and asks her to translate that to how hard it must be to have children Wow。 Damn。 This book。 I am so angry at our country。 Why do we spend more money to tear families apart than it would take to support them and keep them together。 Are we really just so blind as to what it means to separate children and parents？ Are we unable to understand that this means the same thing to others as it would mean to us？ Chanel asks a woman in the court system how hard it is for her to leave her dog for a night， and asks her to translate that to how hard it must be to have children taken away。 This basic human understanding is missing from our policies and institutions， and that lack is evil， and makes our policies and institutions evil。 。。。more
Mindy
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Audio
Skucherer
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Brace yourself。 This is the opposite of a feel-good success story。 The story of Dasani and her family is eye-opening， frustrating， thought-provoking， infuriating， depressing， overwhelming， discouraging， and shocking。Fleeting glimmers of hope and possibility are often quickly lost and overwhelmed in this tragic and complicated situation。 Grandmother Joanie and Dasani’s caring teachers made great， but unsuccessful， efforts to help the family and Dasani break the cycle。
Andrea
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Wow wow wow
Elena
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Invisible ChildTitle should have been “Brooklyn Survivor”。 The main character Dasanti was not invisible。 A child with promise makes a series of mistakes， which are debatable。 Living in poverty， this large family does everything possible to stick together。 Best book of 2021 for me。
Mac
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Top notch， for those who like ethnography。
Amy
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What an unbelievably gut-wrenching， yet important book。 Andrea Elliott followed an unhoused family of ten: parents Chanel and Supreme， and eight children: Dasani， Khaliq， Papa， Nana， Avianna， Maya， Hada， and baby Lee-Lee from 2012 through the present as they navigate poverty on the streets of New York City。 At every turn， it seems as though the people and agencies who are put in place to help the poor and unhoused are making decisions that are not in the best interest of the families they have b What an unbelievably gut-wrenching， yet important book。 Andrea Elliott followed an unhoused family of ten: parents Chanel and Supreme， and eight children: Dasani， Khaliq， Papa， Nana， Avianna， Maya， Hada， and baby Lee-Lee from 2012 through the present as they navigate poverty on the streets of New York City。 At every turn， it seems as though the people and agencies who are put in place to help the poor and unhoused are making decisions that are not in the best interest of the families they have been founded to serve。 Only once did I understand a little bit: when a child died due to an agent's negligence。 I was shocked to learn that the Foundling agency was paying over $33，000 a month， more than $400，000 per year， to take care of the eight children whom they had removed from Chanel and Supreme's care; the author notes that it would have been less expensive to pay for an in-home specialist。 I appreciated the author including backstory about Chanel's relatives as well as the history of the welfare system and how it disproportionately removes more Black children from homes。 。。。more
Kelly
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Wow， I liked this one。 It is a hard read， not because it’s poorly written， because reading what this family and these kids have gone through and knowing others are going through it too is heart breaking。 I really appreciate how thorough Andrea Elliot was-the family’s history， the politics， the neighborhoods-she covers it all in a way that truly helps you understand how it has come to be and the difficulty in breaking the cycles。 I will say there were times the book felt long and somethings could Wow， I liked this one。 It is a hard read， not because it’s poorly written， because reading what this family and these kids have gone through and knowing others are going through it too is heart breaking。 I really appreciate how thorough Andrea Elliot was-the family’s history， the politics， the neighborhoods-she covers it all in a way that truly helps you understand how it has come to be and the difficulty in breaking the cycles。 I will say there were times the book felt long and somethings could have been shortened。 As a reader knowing that a journalist was there throughout many of the events and couldn’t help correct things in court was frustrating。 However， I truly appreciated reading this book and feel honored knowing Dasani and family’s story。 。。。more
Eric
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Probably the best book I've read this year。 Essential reading。 Probably the best book I've read this year。 Essential reading。 。。。more
Vicki
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Frustrating， moving， and tragic。 I must confess that I was unable to find the hope mentioned in the title， but I am glad I read this very important book。
Dee
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Sad story about the power of poverty impacting every aspect of a child’s life。 So sad I couldn’t read the whole book but I knew how it ended from The NY Times story。
Jane
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Invisible Child is without doubt one of the best and most important books I have ever read。 It is a book for our time， but it is also a book for all times。 I found it challenging to put down， but I also had no choice but to stop at times to process all that I was reading。 At over 500 pages it moves along， and there are no sections to skip or scan。 The endnotes are substantial， informative and interesting in themselves。 Definitely read the afterward because it answers some questions and helps bri Invisible Child is without doubt one of the best and most important books I have ever read。 It is a book for our time， but it is also a book for all times。 I found it challenging to put down， but I also had no choice but to stop at times to process all that I was reading。 At over 500 pages it moves along， and there are no sections to skip or scan。 The endnotes are substantial， informative and interesting in themselves。 Definitely read the afterward because it answers some questions and helps bring closure。 I have to begin by stating how impressed I am with the writing。 The journalist/ethnographer clearly walked a fine line over many years， engaging with this child and her family， keeping a balance and perspective on the story she was telling as well as the moral obligations for telling it。 As a result， it is a raw， heartbreaking， brutal， honest and authentic window and door into a life of poverty in New York City。 I don’t know if I have ever felt the need to also recognize researchers， editors or journalism mentors when discussing a book， but it doesn’t seem fair not to in this instance。 This book is incredibly readable， and it is most likely because the author had a first rate team of support。 I certainly feel it when these elements are missing in a book， so it is important to point them out。 Fans of There are No Children Here will find this a more than worthy literary partner。 If I were to subtitle this book， I actually might call it “There are no answers here。” In the afterward the author states that just when she thought perhaps the story was complete that something else would happen。 It was hard to imagine that things could get worse， or certainly not better。 Brooklyn becomes a character， as does the Milton Hershey School in Pennsylvania， which I wound fascinating。 Dasani is at the center of the book， but the circles of her world extend outward。 What the book does highlight is the power of family love。 This mother clearly loves and adores her children。 However， she lives within a culture that does absolutely nothing to support her。 The number of paid professionals who come into and fade out of their lives is remarkable。 Very few stick around。 Mentors are hard to come by。 Yet when a teacher， administrator or counselor really shows up， and listens， their impact can be substantial。 Dasani’s mother keenly recognizes who truly cares about her family， and that doesn’t occur frequently enough。 I suggest that readers also check out the author’s website。 There are no photos in the book， but plenty can be found online。 I found these to be very interesting。Who do I recommend this book for？ It is long and full， so it requires a commitment。 I suggest it for anyone who works as or require it for anyone who hopes to be a teacher， counselor or legal advocate。 This book focuses on urban poverty， and yet I think that there are many parallels to rural poverty as well。 Readers who want to understand our world and its need for social justice will find this fascinating。 Most of all， this is a great book， and readers who appreciate high quality well crafted nonfiction will find this book to be very special。 。。。more
Cristina C Muffly
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Excellent reporting on an important topic。 But just too long。
Jessica Zu
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i will re-read this book every year and check what I’ve been done for people like Dasani。 life is never fair。 the system is fucked up。
Diane Kresh
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I could not put this book down。 Meticulously chronicled story of the cycle of poverty。 A family of eight children and parents torn apart by the system designed to shelter and protect them。 Heartbreaking and sobering。
Antoniette
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Researched and written in a style reminiscent of There Are No Children Here。。。 The author， Andrea Elliot， a reporter， closely follows an impoverished American family over the course of eight years， taking us along to bear witness to their struggles with "the system"。While giving us an opportunity to watch this family's story as it unfolds， Elliot additionally weaves in the story of the family's ancestors' lives as well as the politics of NYC and its government agencies。。。 a very informative and Researched and written in a style reminiscent of There Are No Children Here。。。 The author， Andrea Elliot， a reporter， closely follows an impoverished American family over the course of eight years， taking us along to bear witness to their struggles with "the system"。While giving us an opportunity to watch this family's story as it unfolds， Elliot additionally weaves in the story of the family's ancestors' lives as well as the politics of NYC and its government agencies。。。 a very informative and emotional book。 。。。more
Skye
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