The People of the Abyss (Pluto Classics): Amazon.co.uk: Jack London: Books

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'No other book of mine took so much of my young heart and tears as that study of the economic degradation of the poor.' Jack London; 'In 1902, Jack London, posing as an out-of-work sailor, went underground into the belly of the beast: the slums of London's East End. With passion and vision, he used his skill as a journalist to expose the horrors of the Abyss to the world... He gained an insight into the slum life which remains unique. By interweaving the personal stories of the people he encountered with political analysis, he produced a vibrant work of nonfiction, which remains relevant to this day... Poverty is war, and it rages on with no end in sight, and the management is still guilty of mismanaging the wealth. Beyond a shadow of a doubt, the People of the Abyss are among us today.' Tarnel Abbott, Great-granddaughter of Jack London, Contributing Editor, Jack London International (www.jack.london.org); With this reprinting of London's incredibly important and readable book, Pluto Press and London remind us of how economic exploitation must always be fought, that we must always be educated in the lives of the unfortunate.' James Williams, editor and publisher of the Jack London Journal; 'During my youth I walked the streets of East London, following in the footsteps of Jack London. He brought back, so movingly to this young reader, the poverty and suffering as well as the laughter and tears manifest in the outcasts and dispossessed... That book helped shatter the smug composure of Edwardian England, as well as providing a transatlantic best seller.' Professor William J. Fishman, Queen Mary and Westfield College --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Product Description

In 1902, Jack London, posing as an out-of-work sailor, went underground into the belly of the beast: the slums of London's East End. With passion and vision, he used his skill as a journalist to expose the horrors of the Abyss to the world. Because of his ability to blend in with working people and put them at their ease, because he donned their clothing, and spent nights on the street --working odd jobs, sleeping in the homeless shelters--he gained an insight into the slum life which remains unique. By interweaving the personal stories of the people he encountered with political analysis, he produced a vibrant work of nonfiction, which remains relevant to this day. Consider the following: about one in five children in the US live in poverty. Poverty is war, and it rages on with no end in sight, and the management is still guilty of mismanaging the wealth. Beyond a shadow of a doubt, the People of the Abyss are among us today.

Jack London was famous for his adventure stories, such as "White Fang" and "The Call of the Wild," but he was also a skilled political writer and social critic. He led a varied and colorful life as a journalist, laborer, fisherman, gold-prospector and even a vagrant. Jack London came to the East End of London in 1902, and "The People of the Abyss" is the result of his investigative journalism that paints a vivid and disturbing portrait. It is both a literary masterpiece and a major sociological study. London posed as a stranded American sailor, sleeping in doss houses and living with the destitute and starving - the record of what he saw there remains as powerful today as it was then. Published to coincide with the centenary of his visit to the East End, this important book is an incredible precursor to the writings of George Orwell, and remains a standard-bearer critique of capitalism.

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17 of 17 people found the following review helpful

The most absorbing, if disturbing read of my whole library. 7 May 2001

By Joan H. Hammond

Format:Paperback

Jack London wrote this at the turn of the 20th century. Now, almost 100 years later, you could still walk around the same area of East London and still encounter similar sights, circumstances and stories. Forget all the romantic Victorian tales you have heard about London, read Jack London's account and get the truth. I have lived in East London all my life, and I am descended from East Londoners. I well recall my Grandmother telling me tales not unlike those recounted in Jack London's book, but often wondered at how true they were. The degredation and indignity of the workhouse ritual, families living on a day-to-day basis, human life counting for nothing, yet beyond the boundaries of Aldgate into the great City of London, Oh! how those rules changed!

If you are at all interested in the welfare of your fellow human in any way shape or form, you must read this book today! It is the best investment in social education you shall ever undertake in your life.

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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

Proving London should be remembered not just for White Fang... 9 Jan 2008

By Spongemix

It is a shame that Jack London is today most associated with White Fang/Call of the Wild when he wrote masterpieces such as this. Describing his experiences in early 20th century poverty stricken East London. Jack London lives and breathes the dirt, poverty and hardship felt by so many of the poorest and disadvantaged, and describes his time both poignantly and with justified disgust at the way in which these people lived day to day.
London describes vividly his time on the streets, his stay in workhouses, slums, doss-houses etc.... The People of the Abyss is a a fascinating realistic glimpse into a city of a people that so tragically lived and died in the worse and cruellest of circumstances. A must read....

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful

Amazing social history of comparatively recent times. 24 Sep 2001

By waf.hurst@virgin.net

Format:Hardcover

I have always been fascinated by the closeness in time of the horrors depicted in this extraordinary work of journalism; it was written only thirty-eight years before I was born and when my father was already a child of eight. The scenes of utter degradation and total social deprivation hit one with as sharp an impact as if they had been written yesterday. This is a book you will be drawn back to again and again