Journey to Nowhere: The Saga of the New Underclass

by Dale Maharidge, Michael Williamson, Bruce Springsteen

Looks at America's homeless and poor and tells the stories of farm workers, illegal aliens, and the unemployed

Genres: Nonfiction, Economics, History, Photography, Politics

224 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1985

About the author

I'm a professor at Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism. I've published ten books, including And Their Children After Them, which won the 1990 non-fiction Pulitzer Prize. The most recent is Bringing Mulligan Home/The Other Side of the Good War (PublicAffairs). Before that I released the paperback edition of Someplace Like America/ Tales from the New Great Depression(University of California Press), with a foreword by Bruce Springsteen.

My books are all thematically connected, I believe, rooted in my curiosity about America and who we are as a people. I've documented the economic crisis since the 1980s. For working people, there is no other way to describe it. If you want, check out the afterword I wrote for the paperback of Someplace Like America--I reported in Detroit for it and I found some very interesting things there that raises questions about where we are going as a country.

I spent the first 15 years of my career as a newspaperman, working in Cleveland and Sacramento. I also taught at Stanford University for 10 years, in the Department of Communication.

Reviews

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read several of Dale Maharidge and Michael S. Williamson's books in reverse chronological order, so recently I tracked down this book, which was their first collaboration in 1985. These two men pair prose and photographs into a powerful narrative that bring to light a forgotten underclass. While some people might look back at the Reagan years as a time of Wall Street successes and financial uptick, that was far from the truth for many. The Rust Belt was in full decline, with impacts still felt today, and the famous Farm Aid concerts began to help those struggling in the heartland.

This book chronicles the story of working-class people who have fallen into desperate straights, starting in Ohio with the decline of Youngstown with their mill closings, and how those tentacles reached outward across the country. The author and photographer traveled the rails out West, immersing themselves in a hidden subculture of homelessness and despair. Because they travel and stay at homeless shelters plus work with the people they interview, they are able to get a truer picture of what is going on. The stories shared in the book are respectful but heartbreaking in their honesty. That some of the people featured in this book get an update in the 2011 book Someplace Like America (which I read first) was fascinating for me, as I was able to read their stories more fully in this book.

A sign that this book was so truthful, is that singer Bruce Springsteen used some lines from this book in his evocative song "Youngstown". A video montage of the song utilizing a few pictures from this book: https://youtu.be/Hxz5hh8GD3w This authentic and thought provoking book will definitely push me to seek other books by this amazing duo.

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having just finished this amazingly written and illustrated book, the words shock and awe seem appropriate to describe how it has impressed me. The writing and the photography in this book are excellent, top notch. It is no wonder that these authors went on to win a Pulitzer for the third in this series of journalistic volumes. I read this because it is a book that deeply impressed and inspired Bruce Springsteen as he was working on his masterpiece album "The Ghost of Tom Joad". Both Bruce's album and this book draw from John Steinbeck's classic "The Grapes of Wrath". What i did not realize is that the desperate conditions that were experienced in the Great Depression by both Steinbeck's Joad family and my ancestors are still at work today. For various economic and political reasons, hard working people are falling victim to circumstance and are being discarded from our society like disposable plates and napkins. These people, who have done everything right are finding themselves sliding off the margins of our communities into a dystopian nightmare of life and death survival. We read the stories of the depression with the distance of time keeping it at arms length from us, but in reality, the desperation continues into present day, and is getting worse. More and more blue collar and even white collar workers are falling off the grid of humanity through no fault of their own, only to find themselves fighting to stay alive until they are rescued, or until they run out of steam and are lost forever. This book portrays the horrific situations in a most beautifully written and photographed manner. As terrible as the subject matter is, just as wonderful is the way in which it is presented. This is a must read. I cannot wait to get my hands on the two follow on books in this series, the third of which won a Pulitzer prize. Excellent book. Outstanding!

[Dave · Rating 3 out of 5]

A train bound for bore me? A pretty one sided beak look at the early 80s, chock full of down and outers. Neat pics, but what’s the point?

[Elidor · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was homeless once (well, twice, actually) about 27 years ago. I thought I had moved on from all that, until I read this amazing book. From the first chapter, the prose and the images brought up deeply repressed memories of trauma and despair. I'm not someone who has a problem with depression, but this book left me in a black pit for three days. And it made me recoil in horror to realize how common an experience it is, how many other people share that little corner of hell.

Dale Maharidge and photographer Michael Williamson brilliantly document the experience of poverty and homelessness. This book is about as close as you can come to what it feels like to be out there short of the actual experience. It is humbling, and it will leave you changed. Five stars.

[Hugh Mulligan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A thoroughly depressing but interesting look at lives affected the the economic downturn in the mid 80s. The writer and photographer traveled the country by car, bus & freight train, meeting and speaking with people who lost their homes and jobs, but were on the move trying to make a fresh start.It is of special interest to Bruce Springsteen fans since the book directly inspired some of his songs, especially on The Ghost of Tom Joad. The songs Youngstown & The New Timerin particular contain lines & images right from the book.

[Jeff · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is an intense experience. It'll make you appreciate what you've got, down to the fork you eat with. So many of the people who worked hard for decades in Youngstown, Detroit, Toledo, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, Columbus, and a hundred other places were discarded by heavy industry during the '81-'83 recession. They were typically intelligent, educated, and had it made for a time. Anyone could have ended up in their situation.

[David LaVaque · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story of thousands of Americans left behind when the steel industry crumbled in the late 1970s. While me and my friends were out playing whiffle ball, hard working men rode in trains around the country looking for work because they refused to go on welfare.

[Peter · Rating 5 out of 5]

I gave this 5 stars, not because it was an enjoyable read but more of an informative book.
It is incredible that this happened only thirty years back. It was reminiscent of a Steinbeck novel.
Very sad.

[Johnny · Rating 5 out of 5]

This train is bound for glory, this train...

An everyman's journey through the beginning of the end of industrial America. The hard scrabble stories resonate and channels Woody, Bob, and Bruce.

[Christopher Sparks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perhaps one of the most influential books I have had the pleasure of reading. I don't let my close friends get away without showing it to them at least twice.

[Caroline · Rating 4 out of 5]

The inspiration for the Boss's "Ghost of Tom Joad" album, even down to word-for-word quotes for "Youngstown." Stunning photographs.

[William T · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pub. 1985