LITERATE AMERICA EMERGING: Seventeen New Readers Speak...

LITERATE AMERICA EMERGING: Seventeen New Readers Speak Out, edited by Barbara Pete and Gary E. Strong (California State Library Foundation: $11.95, illustrated). An estimated 20% of American adults are functionally illiterate: These autobiographical accounts by men and women who recently learned to read through adult-education programs put a human face on that disturbing statistic. Their stories reveal the isolation, feelings of inferiority and mockery that illiterate adults endure in this visually oriented society. The authors explain how their newly acquired reading skills give them access to better employment, shared moments with their children and a wider vision of the world. Their obvious sincerity imbues these modest essays with an unassuming eloquence.