We Take Care of Our Own: Faith, Class, and Politics in the Art of Bruce Springsteen

We Take Care of Our Own traces the evolution of Bruce Springsteen’s beliefs, beginning with his New Jersey childhood and ending with his most recent works from Springsteen on Broadway to Letter to You. The author follows the singer’s life, examining his albums and a variety of influences (both musical and nonmusical), especially his Catholic upbringing and his family life, to show how he became an outspoken icon for working-class America--indeed for working-class life throughout the world. In this way, the author emphasizes the universality of Springsteen’s canon and depicts how a working-class sensibility can apply to anyone anywhere who believes in fairness and respect. In addition, the author places Springsteen in the historical context not only of literature (especially John Steinbeck) but also of the art world (specifically the work of Thomas Hart Benton and Edward Hopper). Among the themes explored in the book include community, a sense of place, America as the Promised Land, the myth of the West, and, ultimately, mortality.

JUNE SKINNER SAWYERS was born in Glasgow, Scotland, and has written and lectured extensively on Bruce Springsteen. Her Springsteen books include Racing in the Street: The Bruce Springsteen Reader, Tougher than the Rest: 100 Best Bruce Springsteen Songs, and, with Jonathan D. Cohen, Long Walk Home: Reflections on Bruce Springsteen (Rutgers Press, 2019). Her other books include Celtic Music, Read the Beatles, 10 Songs That Changed the World, Cabaret FAQ, and Bob Dylan’s New York. Her work has appeared in the Chicago Tribune, the San Francisco Chronicle, and the TLS, among other publications. In addition, she in an associate producer of Voices over the Water, a documentary on the Scottish diaspora.

ANDRE DUBUS III is the author of The Cage Keeper and Other Stories, Bluesman, and the New York Times bestsellers, House of Sand and Fog, The Garden of Last Days and the memoir, Townie, a #4 New York Times bestseller and a New York Times ＂Editors Choice.＂