The Poisoned City

Flint's Water and the American Urban Tragedy

De: Anna Clark

Narrado por: Xe Sands

Winner of The Hillman Prize for Book Journalism - 2019

When the people of Flint, Michigan, turned on their faucets in April 2014, the water pouring out was poisoned with lead and other toxins.

Through a series of disastrous decisions, the state government had switched the city’s water supply to a source that corroded Flint’s aging lead pipes. Complaints about the foul-smelling water were dismissed: the residents of Flint, mostly poor and African American, were not seen as credible, even in matters of their own lives.

It took eighteen months of activism by city residents and a band of dogged outsiders to force the state to admit that the water was poisonous. By that time, twelve people had died and Flint’s children had suffered irreparable harm. The long battle for accountability and a humane response to this man-made disaster has only just begun.

In Anna Clark's full account of this American tragedy, Anna Clark's The Poisoned City recounts the gripping story of Flint’s poisoned water through the people who caused it, suffered from it, and exposed it. It is a chronicle of one town, but could also be about any American city, all made precarious by the neglect of infrastructure and the erosion of democratic decision making.

Places like Flint are set up to fail—and for the people who live and work in them, the consequences can be fatal.

Reseñas de la Crítica

"The tainted and harmful water supply of Flint, Michigan, did not happen accidentally. It resulted from an ongoing failure of individuals and institutions and reflects how our nation values some lives over others. To communicate such a blunt message, Xe Sands is the perfect narrator because her voice is smartly intimate. Her inviting tone comes through like a confidante's whisper and transforms the harsh issues that Clark highlights into a narrative that listeners will be ready to hear." -<i>AudioFile </i>

Shocking

Riveting retelling of the Flint tragedy. All of the small details not told in national news leaves you asking even more "How does this happen in America?"

Exceptionally Good

Excellent, well written, well documented, and unbiased exposure of an American crisis and tragedy. PRAY!

A Must Read

eye opening!

This book was very Informative and makes you think!
The narrator read a little fast sometimes though and it was hard to keep up at some points.
Overall great and recomended to everyone!

interesting, but economically wanting

interesting analysis, but the sub-theme of economic disaster was under-developed. propose long term solutions, please.

Informative

If one is interested in water management and urban management, the detailed description and additional information on other cities are helpful