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Off the Books NPR coverage of Off the Books: The Underground Economy of the Urban Poor by Sudhir Alladi Venkatesh. News, author interviews, critics' picks and more.
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Off the Books

The Underground Economy of the Urban Poor

by Sudhir Alladi Venkatesh

Hardcover, 426 pages, Harvard Univ Pr, List Price: $27.95 |

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Title
Off the Books
Subtitle
The Underground Economy of the Urban Poor
Author
Sudhir Alladi Venkatesh

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Book Summary

The desperate, dangerous, and remarkable ways in which the Marquis Park community on Chicago's Southside survives is explored in this devastating critique of the entrenched poverty so often ignored in America.

NPR stories about Off the Books

Economy

Urban Poor Cope with Help from Informal Economy

A Columbia University sociologist gives an inside view of informal economies which are central to life in the inner city. It's not just drug dealing and loan sharking that's off the books — it's child care, hair braiding, oil changes and house cleaning.

Urban Poor Cope with Help from Informal Economy

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Low-Wage America

The Underground Economy of the Urban Poor

In America's poor neighborhoods, there are ways to make a living, but many of them are "off the books." Sociologist Sudhir Venkatesh immersed himself in one Southside Chicago community and discusses his findings.

The Underground Economy of the Urban Poor

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  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/6195673/6195674" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript