It has been said that the term "white trash" is the last racial slur you can still get away with saying. With that in mind, the editors of White Trash have collected essays that explore the undefined middle ground separating classism and racism. Certainly, the idea that the wealthy look down on the poor is nothing new or immediately interesting, but are poor whites seen by rich whites as a debased offshoot of their own species? Of course, it's more complex than that; the word "race" as we use it is more a sociological term than a biological one. In the 13 essays that make up this interesting book, the public perception of poor white identity is explored through examination of social phenomena. Trailer parks, kitsch collectibles and Elvis all get their due, but the most revealing sections deal with hard facts like income levels versus education in low-income rural areas, for example, or the intricate relationships between poor blacks and poor whites. Where the book loses momentum is in its intellectual intensity. Editors Matt Wray and Annalee Newitz are serious academics, and this book has more than its share of footnotes, references to arcane university publications, and phrases like "perjorative naming practices that resonate pathologically and create a disempowered other," which would certainly turn off any of this book's subjects. But there's also good, common-sense stuff in White Trash about America's next unspoken crisis: the growing disdain in the harried middle class for the poor of any color.