Review 197: Working: People Talk about What They Do All Day and How They Feel about What They Do

Working: People Talk about What They Do All Day and How They Feel about What They Do by Studs Terkel
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I could write a very long review for this book, but I’ll leave that for my notes. Going in I expected this would be a tad boring at times, and would take me a while (months) to read this. Instead I was quite fascinated by all of the different stories and found myself not wanting to put it down.

Despite the age, this book is still timely and worth reading. A few entries show their age, such as jobs that no longer exist (see: Harold Patrick - elevator operator), or talk about their pay in 1970s value. Some entries show the age as a surprising statement at how things have changed in the workplace, particularly for women. Attitudes towards people of color have also advanced, but not quite as noticeably. A couple of jaw dropping entries will prove things do change (see: Barbara Herrick – writer/producer in advertising). There's also one or two I never heard of before (see: Richard Mann - Installment Dealer). And then there's the entries reminding me of jobs I had and why I didn’t like them (see: Nancy Rogers - Bank Teller).

There is a lot of craft in this book as well, that may not seem obvious. The entries are not directly from the people’s mouth, but edited down. You still get their words and personality, but it is modified. Also the placement of the entries, they could lead you towards a certain emotional response, which could be different if read in a different order.

I’ve known about this book since college, read a few of the passages back then for a class I ended up not taking. I’ve always wanted to go back and read the entirety and glad I finally did. This is a book that could spark a lot of book discussions about life and especially about work.

I’d love to see an updated version of this book, as it’s been 50 years now. There is this book: Gig: Americans Talk about Their Jobs. Sounds so similar, like an update, and already 10 years old. Moving it up the reading list.