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nickel and dimed: on (not) getting by in america
barbara ehrenreich
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I've wanted to read this book since it came out in May of 2001 but had a hard time getting it from the library because apparently every old lady in Wake County wanted to read it too. It's a slim book - 221 pages - so you should get through fast since you really can't put it down. The author decides to see if she can support herself working a series of unskilled jobs - waitress, maid, Wal-Mart employee, nursing home assistant - in different parts of the country. What ensues is a fascinating look at the American workforce today and the fact that you can't support yourself working these kinds of jobs. Do you ever go to a fast food place and wonder how people can work there? This book explores exactly that question. The author gets her co-workers stories and you find a vicious cycle: they have to work at the diner down the street because they don't have a car but they don't make enough money at the diner to get a car so they can't drive to get a better paying job in the next town over. When she works as a maid you find that maid services don't really clean your house as much as wipe it down. She also describes the three different kinds of shit she cleans in people's toilets and wonders if rich people are actually losing pubic hair faster than poor people (as evidenced by the condition of their bathrooms.) She offers lots of facts and figures about the poverty level, working class wages, etc., which will no doubt depress you as it did me. All in all, an amazing book that will make you thankful for whatever job you have that is paying you more than $6.50 an hour (sorry, Rich!)
This book is available in paperback. Read the first chapter and start cleaning your own damn house!
(reviewed by lisa) |
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reviewed by: lisa may |
April 2002 [link] |
recommend 3 thumbs up
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nineteen minutes
jodi picoult
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| If you can get past the schmaltzy cover (my husband thought it was a self-help book) you'll find a riviting story about a columbine-style school shooting and a social commentary on who's to blame. It only takes Peter Houghton nineteen minutes to shoot up his high school and change lives forever in the town of Sterling, New Hampshire. The book explores different ideas on who is to blame - the naive parents? The school administration who turned their backs on kids getting bullied? Violent video games? The shooter who was a victim of vicious bullying his whole life? Or all of the above? The characters are richly drawn and there are moments that are heart-wrenching. There are many details that mirror that of the Columbine shooting but the "surprise" ending reminds you it's just a novel after all. |
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reviewed by: lisa may |
September 2007 [link] |
recommend
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