[As Sian foolishly or unfoolishly takes on our suggestions for what to read and what to do, in order to learn about our work at INCITE, she'll occasionally post reports here. These should provide an interesting perspective on our work, penned from the inside by an outsider who is soon to be an insider. -kris]

So far I’ve skipped my way through Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich which I found well written and insightful (Thanks Nina – it was a really good first book to give me) . Especially her “explanation” of why low paid workers often “choose” options which to the middle class seem wasteful and inefficient e.g. living in motels not cheaper flats. (Barbara points out the cheaper option often requires a downpayment or a deposit that poor people don’t have.) I guess the UK equivalent is the poor's use of pay as you go phones, which I think relates to some of Kris’ research in the West London woman’s housing centre.
-Sian