Anything you wished you done differently in the book after you pressed send on the final manuscript?

I just wished I could add updates! Needless to say, the story continues to develop. Fortunately, they let me write an afterword for the paperback edition, so I was able to do a little of that.

Paul, Thank you for stopping by the Lake and spending the afternoon with us discussing your new book.

Andrea, Thank you again for Hosting this great Book Salon.

Everyone, if you haven’t bought Paul’s book yet, here is a link.

Thanks all.

can you see a political career for him?

I have to say, when I was watching him this week address this conference of 1,400 people, the thought did cross my mind…

Do you think that this confusion/conflict about the role of government in our lives is related to the lack of will, heretofore, to engage in the kind of bold steps that Canada is taking?

Well, I think we’re confused about the role of government for a whole lot of reasons!

I actually think that the vision that both Geoffrey Canada and Barack Obama have laid out, of a public/private/philanthropic partnership to take on the problems of urban poverty, is quite interesting, and it could potentially change some people’s thinking about what government can and can’t do.

What’s next for you in terms of your investigations and reporting? Can you give us a sneak preview on your next Times Magazine article and/or book? We promise we won’t tell anyone.

I’m not sure yet, actually. I’m thinking about a second book, and I’m continuing to do a lot of reporting in this field, but I’m still trying to fit it all together into a book-sized idea.

(Thanks for the offer of confidentiality, though.)

Is HCZ working on the issue of college affordability for the young people who have emerged from its pipeline? Whenever you quote Canada as setting up college the expectation for every young person, I couldn’t help wondering if such a thing would be challenging despite the academic achievements of the HCZ graduates.

They’re beginning to, yes. So far the HCZ staff has been pretty successful at getting grants and loans and scholarships for the students they help get into college. But that may become more of a challenge as the numbers increase.