The broken ladder : how inequality affects the way we think, live and die / Keith Payne.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Introduction -- Lunch lady economics: why feeling poor hurts like being poor -- Relatively easy: why we can't stop comparing ourselves to others -- Poor logic: inequality has a logic of its own -- The right, the left, and the ladder: how inequality divides our politics -- Long lives and tall tombstones: inequality is a matter of life and death -- God, conspiracies, and the language of the angels: why people believe what they need to believe -- Inequality in black and white: the dangerous dance of racial and economic inequality -- The corporate ladder: why fair pay signals fair play -- The art of living vertically: flatter ladders, comparing with care, and the things that matter most.

"Inequality is on a scale that has not been seen in our lifetimes, yet the disparity between rich and poor has ramifications that extend far beyond mere financial means. The Broken Ladder tells the story of inequality and its impact on everything from our thinking to our mood and our health."--Publisher's website.