This book takes a look at the present day dysfunction of the city of Detroit through the lens of several of its inhabitants, recounting their troubles and pulling back the curtain to reveal the forces and decisions which caused problems.

Having lived outside of Detroit for close to 30 years, I was drawn to this book to learn more about the city. Further, I've really enjoyed other adjacent nonfiction (Nickel and Dimed, A $500 House in Detroit, and Evicted come to mind).

While the topic held my interest the structure caused me difficulty. I found it difficult to go back and forth between broader passages and the narration of an individual's circumstances, and to go from one individual to another. It's possible that the eArc format contained fewer visual cues (headings) than the finished book

With thanks to NetGalley and to St. Martin's Press for the Arc.

This was okay, but seemed like mostly the author's pity party for herself. Everyone has hard times, and she writes as though she is the only one. Not so great.........

We've seen the news headlines about cities filing for bankruptcy and, of course, we know how bad it sounds. But, how is it felt on a personal level? Jodie Adams Kirshner's Broke follows seven Detroit residents to answer that question.

A lot of our information input lives in statistics. We hear numbers, we are told how bad something is, but if we haven't lived it or had someone close to us live it, then we often can't grasp the magnitude of these issues. Books like Kirshner's serves to help bridge that gap and help us to feel empathy for those who are affected by policy. It doesn't seek to gain pity, however. There is nothing in the book that suggests that you should feel guilty for not seeing the struggle as it is, but the effect is that you will understand the issues more holistically.

I am not well-educated in these issues, yet I found this book well-written and well-researched. I came away with a better understanding of how policies and predatory practices can destroy a community. It really wasn't that long ago that Detroit was a glittering city - it's scary how quickly it changed.

Thank you to Jodie Adams Kirshner, St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for allowing me access to this book. As always, all opinions are my own.

I've grown up near Detroit, and always wondered how everything has gone so off-the-rails with the housing. This book is an engrossing look at how the government has failed the community, leading to decimation of entire neighborhoods. I think this is a fantastic read that everyone can learn from.

Eye opening look at how government loans bank loans took advantage of people in Detroit looking to buy homes in a market that was decimated abandoned homes stripped clean of everything that can be stolen stoves ,toilets ,copper wiring .We meet decent people ,who do not have money to purchase homes in the suburbs who will negotiate ridiculous deals ,terms to get the American dream of a home.This is in a lot of ways an American Tragedy families who move into homes start working on them just to discover they don’t have clear deeds.Heartbreaking stories .a sad very moving study.#netgalley #st.Martinsboojs

Broke is a well researched book and informative. The book is well written and it is sad how our politicians spend the money not caring of the damage they do. They are wreckless and do not care about the poor.