Author Guide · Sociology & Ethnography
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To understand what eviction does to poor families, the sociologist Matthew Desmond moved into a trailer park on the south side of Milwaukee and then into a rooming house in the city's poorest Black neighbourhood. He followed eight families as their landlords took them to court, and the landlords too. Evicted won the Pulitzer Prize and changed how America talks about housing. Years earlier he had spent four seasons as a wildland firefighter in Arizona, and wrote about that too. This guide covers all five of his books in order, and where to start.
By Lisanne Swart · 5 books · Sociology and ethnography · 2007–2023 · Updated October 2026
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Quick answer
Matthew Desmond has published five books: On the Fireline (2007), about wildland firefighters; two books on race written with Mustafa Emirbayer, The Racial Order and the textbook Race in America (both 2015); Evicted (2016), which won the Pulitzer Prize; and Poverty, by America (2023). Evicted is the place to start.
Where to Start with Matthew Desmond
If you want the famous one
→ Evicted (2016).
If you want the argument
→ Poverty, by America (2023).
If you want where it started
→ On the Fireline (2007).
All 5 Matthew Desmond Books, in Order
On the Fireline
Desmond spent four seasons as a member of a wildland firefighting crew in Arizona and asks why young men from rural, working-class backgrounds take on such dangerous work.
The Racial Order
Written with Mustafa Emirbayer: a theoretical work on how race shapes social life, for an academic audience.
Race in America
Written with Mustafa Emirbayer: a university textbook on race and racism in American institutions, from education and work to housing and the law.
Evicted
Eight families in Milwaukee, among them Arleen, a single mother, and Lamar, a man with no legs, struggling to keep a roof over their heads, and the two landlords who rent to them. Desmond argues that eviction is not only a condition of poverty but a cause of it. It also won the National Book Critics Circle Award and was named one of the best books of the century by The New York Times.
Poverty, by America
A shorter, argumentative book asking why there is so much poverty in a country so rich, and arguing that it persists because many other Americans benefit from it.
How Many Books Did Matthew Desmond Write?
Five books between 2007 and 2023, two of them academic works written with Mustafa Emirbayer.
- Ethnography — On the Fireline (2007) and Evicted (2016). Read the entries →
- Argument — Poverty, by America (2023). Read the entries →
- Academic — The Racial Order and Race in America (2015). Read the entries →
In What Order to Read Matthew Desmond
For general readers, Evicted and Poverty, by America are the two to read, in that order: the first shows the problem through people's lives, the second makes the argument about what to do.
A reading path
1. Evicted (2016)
2. Poverty, by America (2023)
3. On the Fireline (2007)
The years · 2007–2023
Quick facts about Matthew Desmond
- Known for
- Matthew Desmond is known for close-up reporting on American poverty, above all Evicted, which followed eight Milwaukee families through eviction and won the Pulitzer Prize.
- 2007
- First book, On the Fireline
- 2015
- MacArthur Fellowship
- 2016
- Evicted
- Position
- Maurice P. During Professor of Sociology, Princeton University
- Founded
- The Eviction Lab, which published the first national dataset of American eviction records
- Education
- Arizona State University; PhD, University of Wisconsin–Madison
- Honours
- MacArthur Fellowship (2015); Pulitzer Prize (2017)
- Writes for
- The New York Times Magazine
- Books
- 5, from 2007 to 2023
The red mark is 2016: Evicted, which won the Pulitzer Prize and is the place to start.
How Matthew Desmond Works: Living Alongside
Desmond is a sociologist who works like a journalist. For Evicted he lived among the people he studied, in a trailer park and a rooming house, and followed them to court, to shelters and to new homes.
He writes the book as narrative and keeps himself out of the story, leaving the methods and data, gathered through surveys and court records, to the notes at the back.
Matthew Desmond on America's eviction crisis, on Fresh Air
Listen to the interview on NPR's Fresh Air →
Matthew Desmond talks about Evicted and the launch of the Eviction Lab on Fresh Air, April 2018.Frequently asked questions about Matthew Desmond's books
How many books has Matthew Desmond written?
Matthew Desmond has published five books: On the Fireline (2007), The Racial Order and Race in America (both 2015, with Mustafa Emirbayer), Evicted (2016) and Poverty, by America (2023).
What is Evicted about?
Evicted (2016) follows eight families in Milwaukee facing eviction, and the landlords who rent to them, to show how eviction drives poverty. It won the Pulitzer Prize.
What is Poverty, by America about?
Poverty, by America (2023) asks why the United States has so much poverty and argues that many Americans benefit from keeping others poor.
Footnotes
Bibliography last verified 1 October 2026.
This list was not put together by a machine.
The notes are all mine,
and the books are all his.
Lisanne x
Written by Lisanne Swart, who has curated reading lists and author guides at lisanneswart.com since 2021.
See more on her personal bookshelf.
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