From Poor Law to Welfare State, 6th Edition: A History of Social Welfare in America

by Walter I. Trattner

Book Overview

Over twenty-five years and through five editions, Walter I. Trattner's From Poor Law to Welfare State has served as the standard text on the history of welfare policy in the United States. The only... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0684854716
• Release Date: December 1998
• Publisher: Free Press
• Length: 464 Pages
• Weight: 1.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.3" x 1.1" x 6.1"

Customer Reviews

Excellent!

This product came WELL in advance of when it was scheduled to come and was in the condition that it said it would be :)

Almost exactly like new

Other than a few minor pencil marks, which came out easily, this book was as good as new; a great value!

School book

Very interesting articles that pertain to the evolution of social welfare in the U.S. well written.

New info

This book, though dry at times, gives a realistic and more complete look at American history. This was required reading for a college course I took. The history contained here is not what is taught in highschool and I was surprised at just how much I did not know about life in America before I was born. America has a very ugly past and present in many ways. We have oppressed, demoralized, institutionalized, degraded, segregated, stereotyped, and persecuted millions of persons over the years. What is unfortunate is that with all our advances in business and technology... there are still single mothers living on the streets, starving with their children. There are still foreign workers being payed much less than minimum wage. There are still persons living with mental illness being drugged and institutionalized. The rich are still getting richer, as they exploit the poor and working classes. America has much to be proud of. America also has much to be ashamed of. This book sheds light on some of the crimes that we (America) has committed against its own people, as we continue to point fingers at others wrongs.

A broad, sweeping history of America and Charity

Trattner takes the reader back in time to define how modern American has developed its current welfare state. Certainly this is a task that cannot be fully done in only 400 pages. The only weakness in this book is that it is too brief. It does not go into enough detail, but it is comprehensive enough to give a solid introduction to the modern American welfare state and the issues that face America's poor. This is a good book.