THE SLAVES WE RENT

The title refers--not unjustly as the text corroborates--to migratory farm labor. This is not a new problem but it involves the very real misery of some two million Americans who have been neglected in wages, living conditions, etc. In spite of a good deal of written attention to this situation from government agencies on up, few changes have been achieved. Mr. Moore's discussion is important in its calm appraisal of the trends behind the actualities, and of the actual possibilities of success for current proposals. His commitment is earnest; he uses facts with assurance, and while never ignoring the difficulties, he proves that many things could as well as must be done. ""There is now a realistic basis for optimism,"" he concludes, and few, having read his book, will disagree. But it is not as good a book as They Harvest Despair (Beacon, p. 152).