Scratch Beginnings by Adam Shepard

Adam Shepard graduated from college in the summer of 2006 feeling disillusioned by the apathy he saw around him and incensed after reading Barbara Ehrenreich's famous works Nickel and Dimed and Bait and Switch—books that gave him a feeling of hopelessness over the state of the working class in America. Eager to see if he could make something out of nothing, he set out to prove wrong Ehrenreich's theory that those who start at the bottom stay at the bottom, and to see if the American Dream can still be a reality. Earnest, passionate, and hard to put down, Scratch Beginnings is a story that will not only inspire readers, but will also remind them that success can come to anyone who is willing to work hard—and that America is still one of the most hopeful and inspiring countries in the world.

Check out Adam's Website: http://scratchbeginnings.com/

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• nickel
• dimed
• Barbara
• Ehrenreich
• Bait
• and
• Switch
• american
• dream
• working
• class
• apathy
• college
• graduate
• guy

[superpete24]

Adam Shepard takes action. You and I post comments on YouTube.

[ContactSou]

Well done this seems like an interesting project and I intend to pick up your book in the next couple of days. That being said, I will go into this with knowledge of a few things that you seem to have forgotten when you went into this: you are white, good looking, articulate, and educated (whether people know it or not). These are all large advantages. That being said, well done it's good to know this is possible.

[UltraProle21]

this guy is a winner.

most liberal entitlement crybabies think they deserve to be handed a great house, a great car, full benefits, and hundreds of thousands of dollars in investments just for getting a meaningless art history degree.

[zoe745]

i have read the preview on the site so far. it looks rather interesting, i like stories that show the exact thought of the moment. i'm going to try and get the book.

[7manifest1]

I still think poverty begins and ends with a mindset. People are more powerful than they know....you are what you think you are; What do you think you are?

[7manifest1]

I have four kids and I'm fifty, but that isn't the comparison to make. I have three boys, 20, 17 and 15 yrs., and I definitely want them to be aware of this!! Why do these kids think they should all be upper middle class with everything handed to them? Because that's all you can find on the TV., that or successful criminals. How sad is that?

[lazy24zzz]

@tom91775 You are right! A lot of people that end up homeless aren't lazy, they lost hope due to many real life problems. By the time they end up homeless, they had went through many slammed doors. For example many of them have kids to support and have to deal with the debt they have accumulated. This kid started essentially on a clean slate, without any debt or real holdbacks. I can go on and on, failed businesses, etc... Optimism is very hard to gain after being shut so many times.

[songstressriri]

That is the kick in the ___ that I needed. I definetly have to read the book. I could use new inspiration, daily really. I believe so many of us need this type of wake up call lately.

[messi0mighty]

It was SUCH a relief to read his book after Nickel and Dimed. I wish Scratch Beginnings was the required AP English reading at my high school, instead of Barbara Ehrenreich's Nickel and Dimed. It would do the school so much better. I can't believe Barbara Enrenreich has more support than Adam Shepard. Just thinking about her book makes my blook boil. And he's pretty much my hero :)

[dutytocareforothers]

I believe Adam is a shill for corporatism and conservativism. He is deliberately trying to make it seem that those who are out of work have bad character and low class. It's very unfair and inaccurate.

[TarHeelBlue11]

get off the kid's back...he did something not many people would do: give up his comfortable lifestyle to pursue a much more challenging lifestyle that many people feel trapped in. His purpose wasn't to condemn people on the bottom, but to encourage and motivate all the complacent people that come from all manners of backgrounds

[bloomingrosevine]

I love this book, but I agree - it is much, much easier with the advantages he had: single and educated, and healthy primarily. Still, the book describes how he turned things around in his own personal fate with his attitude, and I think it is quite valuable. Also, a good discussion about poverty at the end of the book.