Favela

A billion people, roughly half of all city dwellers in the developing world, live in squatter settlements. The most famous of these settlements are the favelas of Rio de Janeiro, which have existed for more than half a century and continue to outpace the rest of the city in growth. Janice Perlman's award-winning The Myth of Marginality was the first in-depth account of life in the favelas, and it is considered one of the most important books in global urban studies in the last 30 years. Now, in Favela, Perlman carries that story forward to the present. Re-interviewing many longtime favela residents whom she had first met in 1969-as well as their children and grandchildren-Perlman offers the only long-term perspective available on the favelados as they struggle for a better life. Perlman discovers that much has changed in three decades, but while educational levels have risen, democracy has replaced dictatorship, and material conditions have improved, many residents feel marginalized more than ever.