Released: 2017
Genre: Non-Fiction, Society, Politics
Number of Pages: 205
As a child who lived through deprivation, Darren McGarvey has a firm grasp of downtrodden communities and why they feel the way they do. By relaying his own experiences in poverty and how they are perceived, Poverty Safari is a compelling look into Britain’s working class malaise.
Most of us have little knowledge or experience of what it means to go without food or live in an abusive household. To venture into these topics, Darren breaks down every element of poverty; the feeling of despondency, a mistrust of authority and the sense of a fractured community unable to produce anything of value. He sets the scene with detailed descriptions, placing us into each location to understand the feelings within.
As the book goes on, McGarvey calls out the flawed and often antagonistic attitudes of the political spectrum. Politicians and activists on both the left and right are shown to have major flaws that prevent positive action. The former often comes off as aloof and refuses to include the poor in wider discussions while the latter places too much blame on people for their circumstances and refuses to help. The writing style feels very direct and personal, packing in a ton of detail across the 205 pages.
One-sided beliefs don’t do any favours, but the author also shows that he himself has acted irrationally without thinking about the effect his words will have. In the closing chapters of the book, Darren reflects on a moment where he called out an art activist online for embarking on a seemingly tone-deaf Glasgow project with council funding, only to realise she was fully invested in understanding the plight of the poor. It’s moments like these that emphasise an authentic and unsensitised viewpoint. Just like the rest of the book, Poverty Safari is unafraid to delve into the more difficult details.
Recommended?
YES: Poverty Safari is a compact book, but it puts you directly into the author’s perspective and why Britain’s working class feel so despondent. Darren has injected so many of his own personal experiences into the book while also being unafraid to confront himself alongside society at large. This encourages the reader to do the same, regardless of their beliefs or political perspective.
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