Broke, USA: From Pawnshops to Poverty, Inc: How the Working Poor Became Big Buisness

BROKE, USA is Gary Rivlin's riveting report from the economic fringes. From the annual meeting of the national cheque cashers association in Las Vegas to a tour of the foreclosure-riddled neighborhoods of Dayton, Ohio, here is a subprime Fast Food Nation featuring an unforgettable cast of characters and memorable scenes. Rivlin profiles players like a former small-town Tennessee debt collector whose business offering cash advances to the working poor has earned him a net worth in the hundreds of millions, and legendary Wall Street dealmaker Sandy Weill, who rode a subprime loan business into control of the nation's largest bank. Rivlin parallels their stories with the tale of those committed souls fighting back against the major corporations, chain franchises, and newly hatched enterprises that fleece the country's hard-working waitresses, warehouse workers, and mall clerks.
Timely, shocking, and powerful, BROKE, USA offers a much-needed look at why America is in a financial mess and gives a voice to the millions of ordinary Americans left devastated in the wake of the economic collapse.