04.2019 Book Recommendation // NOMADLAND by Jessica Bruder

This month, I wanted to recommend one of my favorite books I’ve read recently–Nomadland: Surviving America in the Twenty-First Century, by Jessica Bruder. This work of non-fiction tells the stories of a small but growing subculture of Americans who live full-time nomadic lives out of vans and RVs, foregoing real estate in favor of “wheel estate.” They work grueling seasonal jobs in Amazon warehouses, national park campgrounds, and beet farms, working long hours for low wages, many times trading their labor for a free parking spot. But these travelers aren’t like the young artists and non-conformist transients of the Beat generation–the majority are older Americans, some well past retirement age, who had lost their jobs, their homes, and their savings in the Great Recession of 2008. While many would not have initially chosen this houseless lifestyle had their circumstances been different, they have built for themselves a tight-knit community, exemplified by a Burning Man-esque festival for van-dwellers which is held in the desert of Arizona each year. To me, this book really illustrated the creative ends that people sometimes have to go to just to survive in this day and age, and it highlighted the exploitation these people, already down on their luck, have faced in the seasonal labor market. At the same time though, it really got me daydreaming about how cool it could be to live that kind of free, wandering lifestyle.

Staff recommendation published in Crafton Public Library's monthly newsletter.