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captain_a's review
3.0
The book kind of lost me on the final chapter. The beginning of the book offers insight into social issues plaguing various parts and people in the country -urban blacks, rural whites, native Americans and Latino migrant workers. It also offers these tiny packets of resistance in these areas. But the final chapter, set against the backdrop of the Occupy Wall Street movement, starts to go off the deep end. Moreover, it doesn't really stand the test of time since OWS is generally regarded as a failed movement.
kevinm56's review
4.0
I liked this book, but I did not enjoy reading it. It opened my eyes to things that perhaps I don't want to think about. It reminded me what a shitty deal the Native Americans got, how hard it is for people in the impoverished inner cities to break out and be successful, how easy it is for people to abuse undocumented migrant farm workers, and how the extraction industries lay waste to the environment as they rip coal, oil or other resources from the earth.
With the benefit of hindsight, I do think his rah-rah opinion of the occupy movement was off base. As best I can see, it's dead. I googled it right before writing this and there wasn't much going on at all. The tea party, on the other hand, is still with us - and having an influence on politics and policy. I feel the disorganized and chaotic nature of the occupy folks described in the book as positives are the very reason they have so little presence and influence now.
With the benefit of hindsight, I do think his rah-rah opinion of the occupy movement was off base. As best I can see, it's dead. I googled it right before writing this and there wasn't much going on at all. The tea party, on the other hand, is still with us - and having an influence on politics and policy. I feel the disorganized and chaotic nature of the occupy folks described in the book as positives are the very reason they have so little presence and influence now.
sweetpeamarie's review
3.0
The Occupy chapter was preachy teeth-pulling and grandstanding; otherwise a fantastic if painful work.
meghan111's review
4.0
Devastating rhetoric and searing illustrations by Joe Sacco. This pulls together the devastation faced by different communities in America in four different compelling and specific stories about Native Americans in South Dakota, coal miners in West Virginia, African Americans in a blighted part of New Jersey, and immigrant farm workers in Florida. The connections between these stories become really clear, although the final story about the Occupy movement is maybe a little naïve. Still, incredibly moving.
crummeyforthewin's review
4.0
I liked this book because it shone a light on some forgotten places in America, those who have been left behind and are suffering as a result of our economy and lust for money. Definitely worth reading.
sofiamarielg's review
4.0
At times it's a little dense, but by the end, Days of Destruction, Days of Revolt strikes as the kind of book that should be required reading not just for people concerned with the issues it explores, but for basically every literate human alive. While that may sound a little patronizing, it's hard not to feel a little shame at one's ignorance of the things that Hedges and Sacco document - at least, I did. Hedges is a great storyteller, and he mostly does a good job of balancing the personal stories he recounts with the facts from his research. His own indignation at the situations he describes is all too clear at certain parts, and it creates a sense of appallment at the fact that things like this are both present - and largely ignored - in America right now. Sacco's illustrations are amazingly detailed, and his depictions of different personal accounts are easily the best part of the book.
rachelwalexander's review
3.0
I wanted to like this book because I've really enjoyed Joe Sacco's other books of comics reporting on international conflicts. This book was at its strongest when it stuck to reporting - sharing individual stories from the four sacrifice zones Hedges and Sacco visited and linking them together to paint a picture of each place. I thought Hedges' rhetoric about the evils of corporations and capitalism detracted from the book - not because I necessarily think his conclusions are factually wrong or unjustified, but because I think solid reporting and research told well is enough to illustrate injustice without the need for sweeping rhetoric. Sacco has a talent for that sort of understated storytelling that starkly illuminates problems and real human suffering without shying away from complexity. There's a lot of good information in here, and the narrative is well-paced, but I could have done with a lot less soapboxing.
mtzfox's review
4.0
The first 4 chapters of this book are among the best investigative journalism I've ever read from Chris Hedges. He chronicals a plethora of experiences within various "sacrifice zones" within the US, shining a light onto many of the darkest areas of this country that have been forgotten by many. I'm so glad I read this for that reason.
The final chapter of the book is both about the rise of the Occupy movement, but also a summation of what Hedges believes the core problems of our era are and his solutions. Much of this felt recycled from previous books by him. I was also really put off by what came across as scathing anti-communism and attacks on black block tactics. Though I agree with some of what he says, his attachment to some of the tactics of Occupy, while denouncing all others, comes off as incredibly biased, morally heavy handed, and surprisingly dated considering what is now commonly known about the shortcomings of Occupy's horizontalist approach. I feel that if Hedges had a bit more forethought, he might be able to realize that the people he denounces so vehemently as enemies of the movement are actually those he should be compassionately trying to convince. What good does calling out Soviet communism again and again and again serve? It's good to be critical and suggest alternatives, but Marxists like myself are also his audience. This chapter is so focused on attacking other views that the arguments about what unites us often seems like an after thought.
Good read but left feeling disappointed by his solutions.
The final chapter of the book is both about the rise of the Occupy movement, but also a summation of what Hedges believes the core problems of our era are and his solutions. Much of this felt recycled from previous books by him. I was also really put off by what came across as scathing anti-communism and attacks on black block tactics. Though I agree with some of what he says, his attachment to some of the tactics of Occupy, while denouncing all others, comes off as incredibly biased, morally heavy handed, and surprisingly dated considering what is now commonly known about the shortcomings of Occupy's horizontalist approach. I feel that if Hedges had a bit more forethought, he might be able to realize that the people he denounces so vehemently as enemies of the movement are actually those he should be compassionately trying to convince. What good does calling out Soviet communism again and again and again serve? It's good to be critical and suggest alternatives, but Marxists like myself are also his audience. This chapter is so focused on attacking other views that the arguments about what unites us often seems like an after thought.
Good read but left feeling disappointed by his solutions.
cpullman's review
4.0
The first 4 chapters are excellent, but as others have said the 5th is out of place and a change of tone. There are minor problems, but it is a powerful book.