Description
Although Las Vegas is the fastest growing metropolitan area in the United States, with a population of more than 1,200,000, little attention has been paid to that part of the city where people actually live--the city apart from the Strip and the flashy older gambling strip of Downtown. This book representing the work of young reporters from all over the United States who spent the better part of a year examining the "Real Las Vegas." Each one looked at a single aspect of life--the lives of teenagers, senior citizens, Mexican immigrants, the homeless, houses of worship, prostitutes, education, labor unions, pawn shops, housing, water supply (in a desert). Eventually they came to realize that no other city could duplicate the Las Vegas experience because no other city has depended for so long on the profits of gambling.
About the Author
David Littlejohn is Professor Emeritus of Journalism at the University of California, Berkeley. He has written or edited eleven previous books, and is the West Coast arts correspondent for The Wall Street Journal. He lives in Kensington, California.
Reviews
"In a shattering series of quick-cut profiles and scenes, Littlejohn's team of crack reporters highlight the voices of off-the-beaten-track Las Vegas--homeless denizens of desperate shelters, residents of the soft pogroms of North (Hispanic) and West (African-American) Vegas, the aimless teens, bingo junkies, sex workers, sagebrush rebels, and real estate speculators who live and wither by the almighty buck, and the cops, union organizers and preachers who control or mitigate the consequences of capitalism run amok. A gritty, people-centered montage of our saddest American dream."--Peter Nabokov "There's a strong chance that Las Vegas--boisterous, demotic, a figment of its own imagination, the Elvis Presley of American cities--may be the last metropolis to develop from scratch in these United States. David Littlejohn and his reporters have done a brilliant job decoding the complexities of America's neon-lit post-modern urban enigma. Viva Las Vegas!-- Kevin Starr, State Librarian of California and author of America and the California Dream series
Book Information
ISBN 9780195130706
Author David Littlejohn
Format Hardback
Page Count 352
Imprint Oxford University Press Inc
Publisher Oxford University Press Inc
Weight(grams) 685g
Dimensions(mm) 164mm * 243mm * 29mm
About the Author
David Littlejohn is Professor Emeritus of Journalism at the University of California, Berkeley. He has written or edited eleven previous books, and is the West Coast arts correspondent for The Wall Street Journal. He lives in Kensington, California.
Reviews
"In a shattering series of quick-cut profiles and scenes, Littlejohn's team of crack reporters highlight the voices of off-the-beaten-track Las Vegas--homeless denizens of desperate shelters, residents of the soft pogroms of North (Hispanic) and West (African-American) Vegas, the aimless teens, bingo junkies, sex workers, sagebrush rebels, and real estate speculators who live and wither by the almighty buck, and the cops, union organizers and preachers who control or mitigate the consequences of capitalism run amok. A gritty, people-centered montage of our saddest American dream."--Peter Nabokov "There's a strong chance that Las Vegas--boisterous, demotic, a figment of its own imagination, the Elvis Presley of American cities--may be the last metropolis to develop from scratch in these United States. David Littlejohn and his reporters have done a brilliant job decoding the complexities of America's neon-lit post-modern urban enigma. Viva Las Vegas!-- Kevin Starr, State Librarian of California and author of America and the California Dream series
Book Information
ISBN 9780195130706
Author David Littlejohn
Format Hardback
Page Count 352
Imprint Oxford University Press Inc
Publisher Oxford University Press Inc
Weight(grams) 685g
Dimensions(mm) 164mm * 243mm * 29mm
