by Sarah Smarsh
First published 2024
Sarah Smarsh grew up on a Kansas wheat farm and became the first in her family to earn a college degree. As a journalist, she turned her attention to the cultural gaps that many in her profession had overlooked. This collection gathers more than thirty essays she wrote between 2013 and 2024, combining personal stories with sharp social commentary. Smarsh tackles class division, political fractures, gender inequality, environmental problems, media bias, and the growing distance between rural and urban America. Her pieces range from intimate reflections to direct news analysis, covering subjects like the social meaning of dental care, laws that punish poverty, problems with red versus blue political thinking, and her experience working at Hooters. The book includes a previously unpublished essay and new introduction. Smarsh brings both graceful storytelling and pointed criticism to the issues that shape our era, offering readers perspective that shifts how they see contemporary America.
Genres: essays, american, social-issues, non-fiction, biography-memoir, 21st-century, journalism, academic
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: personal-narrative, social-commentary
Setting: Kansas
Period: 2013-2024
348 pages · Kindle Edition · Scribner