Non-fiction
City of Gardens: The Other Side of the Fence
Patrick J. Schnerch
Trafford Publishing
2008
ISBN: 978-1-4251-8792-7
Soft cover
304 pages
Patrick J. Schnerch, the author of the Peaceful Warrior, a memoir about his struggles with mental illness and addiction, has written a new book about the plight of the homeless in Victoria, British Columbia. In City of Gardens: The Other Side of the Fence, Schnerch discusses the lifestyles of the homeless and delves into the mental illness and addiction that runs rampant among this population. The author describes the lack of assistance available to the homeless in Victoria and the action that has been taken and that is still needed to solve the problem of housing and treatment.
Schnerch reports that there are over 1200 homeless living in Victoria's Capital Regional District, the seat of government. "With the Winter Olympic Games coming to Vancouver in 2010, it seems that all three levels of government are in a big huff to clean up the streets for the tourists and visitors (5)." According to the author, the solution for the homeless problem proposed by the mayor of Victoria is to provide housing for a significant number of the homeless before the games occur.
The life of the homeless in Victoria is thoroughly described. Profiles of four people with unstable housing or no housing at all are included to put flesh on the statistics that are presented throughout the book. Schnerch discusses various housing options used by the homeless including temporary housing, couch-surfing, and tent cities. Drug use due to addiction and the self-medicating of mental illness are also addressed.
While the author includes valuable information from experts in the field such as the CEO of a pending residential addiction program, a journalist who reports on the marginal members of the Victoria community, and an activist who runs a local newspaper, the book does have some deficiencies. Schnerch has filled the pages with statistics about the percentage of homeless people who are mentally ill and/or addicted to drugs and alcohol, the availability of affordable housing and treatment, and how large and quickly the homeless population will grow; but there are no bibliographical references included in the book. The inclusion of references would have added considerably to the credibility of the book.
City of Gardens is an enlightening text on a problem that is growing in all parts of North America. Schnerch's effort to bring light to the issue in his corner of the world displays a passion for people who have suffered with mental illness and addiction as he has. It is an honorable attempt to inform and educate his community and society at-large.
Melissa Levine
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