Arlie Russell Hochschild, acclaimed author of the NY Times bestseller Strangers in Their Own Land, brings to the East Bay a conversation about her new book, Stolen Pride: Loss, Shame, and the Rise of the Right.

Hochschild travels to Pikeville in eastern Kentucky, the heart of Appalachia, and sets her focus on a group at the center of the shifting political landscape: blue-collar men. There she uncovers what she calls the “pride paradox” and explores the hidden but powerful role of loss, shame, and pride in their views on many issues—including democracy. “One man I came to know described Donald Trump as ‘lightning in a jar.’ This is a book about that lightning. It’s about the social and emotional ‘weather’ that pre- conditioned the lightning and led that jar to crack.” Stolen Pride gives us an original interpretation of the political divide.

Arlie Russell Hochschild is the author of several groundbreaking books, including The Second Shift, The Managed Heart, and The Time Bind as well as Strangers in Their Own Land, a finalist for a National Book Award. Hochschild is professor emerita of sociology at the University of California, Berkeley.

“In Stolen Pride, Arlie Russell Hochschild continues her cutting-edge research into forgotten Americans, people who desperately need help but cling to the myth that anyone can make it in America through hard work. Hochschild’s insights are compassionate, illuminating, and deeply moving.” —Robert B. Reich, former secretary of labor and professor emeritus, University of California at Berkeley

This program is part of the Civic Conversation Series sponsored by the Lafayette Library and Learning Center Foundation in celebration of the Lafayette Library and Learning Center's 15th Anniversary year.

Stolen Pride: Loss, Shame and the Rise of the Right will be available at the program. Pre-purchased copies may also be picked up at Orinda Books starting September 10.

Arlie Russell Hochschild

The Lafayette Library and Learning Center Foundation Distinguished Speaker Series in partnership with Commonwealth Club World Affairs presents