Alex Kotlowitz's There Are No Children Here

Most Americans like to think of The United States as a meritocracy. Children are and have been taught from a very young age that if you truly worked hard enough and focused, you could achieve anything you set your mind to. They often don’t mention the fact that sometimes hard work and attention may not be enough, and that in some places of America that will never be enough to truly achieve what you wish to accomplish. The book There Are No Children Here mentions on the front cover that there also exists “the other America.” In places like this instead of being taught to dream about what they want to be, they’re taught how to avoid gunshots and make it out of “the other America.” Alex Kotlowitz helps readers better understand what it's like in places like these and how even the most enduring of people don't always make it out of places like the projects, such as those in There Are No Children Here. In the book we meet Pharaoh and Lafayette Walton, Pharaoh Walton is very determined to get out of the projects and he works hard in school. The book does not reveal the complete story of the brothers and later on an article was released about the two 20 years after the publication of There Are No Children Here. Pharaoh managed to stay out of trouble for most of his life however, a few years ago he was arrested …show more content…
Some work countless hours and still do not become successful.It is possible to become successful in America from hard work however, when put into a situation where the best way to make money and to stay safe is to join a gang and sell drugs it becomes hard not to seemingly take an easy way out and make some money. So yes, hard work can amount to success but not every person is placed into ideal living conditions and the hard work it would take a middle-class person to be successful is nowhere near the amount of effort it requires to be successful as a lower-class