What happens when “efficiency” comes at the expense of people? In his new book, American Carnage, Journalist and UC Davis Writing Center lecturer Sasha Abramsky examines the human cost of DOGE cuts during the second Trump administration. From lost healthcare to erased pensions, Abramsky focuses on the lived experiences behind policy decisions and reflects on empathy, free speech and the state of journalism today.

American Carnage is the first book-length reckoning with the consequences of Donald Trump’s war on the so-called "deep state," told through the experiences of 11 fired federal workers as their lives are thrown into chaos.

This month, explore how connections are formed, maintained and shared with letters and science authors. In this collection of books, our authors and scholars mine their own families as their inspiration for memoirs, poetry, fiction and analyses.