Simon Paré-Poupart has spent two decades doing the job most people would rather not think about: collecting what everyone else throws away.
In Trash!, the Canadian garbageman takes readers behind the truck to reveal a world of brutal physical labor, extreme weather, dangerous working conditions, unlikely friendships, and workers society often overlooks. Paré-Poupart has hauled tens of thousands of tons of waste, yet he also holds graduate degrees—a contradiction that challenges easy assumptions about who does this work and why.
Along the way, he introduces unforgettable coworkers, exposes uncomfortable truths about recycling and consumer culture, and asks a provocative question: Why do we look down on the people performing one of society’s most essential jobs?
Raw, funny, angry, and surprisingly moving, Trash! will change the way you see what happens after the garbage leaves the curb.
Read the Instaread summary of Trash! by Simon Paré-Poupart.
