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From one of the comments on the Amazon page:
At first glance this seems a bizarre book, loads of families with all their junk strewn out on the street and lots of pictures of them doing every day activities. I am a member of the average family of Great Britain, one of the countries featured in this book. I was 15 when the photos were taken and when the interviews, videos and documentaries were undertaken. At the time I don't think I realised the scale of the project or the impact it would have on people's conversations. When it was first published in a newspaper in Britain, our family was pictured and interviewed alongside the family from Burma; there could not be more of a contrast. Over the years it has made me realise, more and more as I read the book and talk about it, just how lucky we are in the West. I was looking at the book this morning and it dawned on me just how many of the possessions in the book have now been replaced in my parents house, bed, sofas, fridge. And we are so lucky to have the means to replace things like that with little effect on our overall standard of living and I think that the book reflects this, especially for countries such as America and Britain.
Thanks for the link!
somehow it breaks my heart, the staggering naivete of that quote. as if the "luck" of the West were just random dumb luck like finding a ten dollar bill in the gutter or happening to be awake for a spectacular sunrise -- rather than being the cousin of the casino owner with the rigged wheel... or Mama Corleone. as if the poverty of a family in Burkina Faso or wherever were wholly unrelated to the wealth of the family in Birmingham (whether AL, US or UK).
sigh The difference between theory and practise in practise ...
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