From New York Times business reporter Nelson D. Schwartz comes a bold and urgent investigation of division between the wealthy and the middle class in every arena of American life.

In nearly every realm of daily life - from health care to education, highways to home security - there is an invisible velvet rope that divides how Americans live. On one side of the rope, for a price, red tape is cut, lines are jumped, appointments are secured, and doors are opened. On the other side, middle - and working-class Americans fight to find an empty seat on the plane, a place in line with their kids at the amusement park, a college acceptance, or a hospital bed.

We are all aware of the gap between the rich and everyone else, but when we weren´t looking, business innovators stepped in to exploit it, shifting services away from the masses and finding new ways to profit by serving the privileged. And as decision-makers and corporate leaders increasingly live on the friction-free side of the velvet rope, they are less inclined to change - or even notice - the obstacles everyone else must contend with. Schwartz´s "must read" book takes us on a behind-the-scenes tour of this new reality and shows the toll the velvet rope divide takes on society.