Nickel and Dimed: Occupations Barbara Ehrenreich provides proof in “Nickel and Dimed” that she is an exceptional author with this book. It’s engaging and compelling, there’s no doubt about it. But it is sometimes difficult to move from one side to the other because of the attitude of the authors. Its key objective is to bring concentration to the benefit of poor workers, but it manages to be both exploitative and divisive. Attacking our industrialist system, she fails to realize that the perseverance of the upper classes seems to be what motivates the poor, rather than what discourages them. She blames capitalism for the world's injustices, rather than simple poor management techniques. A company must be shown that it would benefit from a union and everyone will be shown that it will promote even better through decent and gentle management decisions. What's even more irritating is that she is constantly negative about everything, even the positive experiences she has. When one of her colleagues offers to move in with her and her family, Ehrenreich not only refuses the proposal, but she still ironically describes it as an "angelic moment." Does she still have to show irony when she writes about an authentically typical act? She condemns "visible Christians", any organization, yuppies, anyone who hires and therefore exploits servants, welfare reform, and always gives a thumbs up to people who study John Grisham. Is there anyone she likes? His logic is also troublesome. She begins her research to see if the functioning poor have any financial endurance tactics that the middle class doesn't, and decides in conclusion that no, they don't, as if to admit that this would mean that the poor are imps. ..... middle of paper ......there (or not) in low-wage jobs in the United States. To achieve this, she spent several months finding and exploiting low-wage jobs while living on the budgets those jobs allowed. (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0805063889/102-7245049-5615318?vi=glance) References Kathy Quinn, Barbara Ehrenreich on Nickel and Dimed, http://www. dsausa.org/lowwage/Documents/Ehrenreich.html Scott Rappaport, Barbara Ehrenreich, author of “Nickel and Dimed,” will speak, http://www.ucsc.edu/currents/02-03/01-27/lecture .html Spotlight Reviews, http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0805063889/102-7245049-5615318?vi=glance The Connection, http://archives.theconnection.org/archive /2001/06 /0625a.shtml The Labor Lawyer, www.bnabooks.com/ababna/laborlawyer/18.2.pdf Nickel and Dimed: We (not) getting by in America www.growinglifestyle.com/prod/0805063889. html