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Working
Not yet published
Expected 16 Mar 27The National Book Award winner’s classic oral history of Americans’ working lives—and the inspiration for Barack Obama’s new Netflix series about work in the twenty-first century
Few books have captured the American experience with such raw, unfiltered power. First published in 1974, Working is Studs Terkel’s landmark work of oral history, a sweeping, intimate portrait of labor in America told entirely through the voices of those who live it.
Drawn from over one hundred interviews with workers across every rung of American society—gravediggers and studio heads, spot-welders and stockbrokers, waitresses and corporate executives—Working does what no economic report or policy paper it puts a human face on the meaning of work. These are not statistics. These are real people, speaking in their own words, about pride and monotony, dignity and alienation, and the daily question that quietly defines us Does what I do matter?
Terkel’s genius lies in the architecture of the book itself. Contrasting voices from the same industries are placed side by side, revealing the fault lines of class, power, and identity that run beneath the surface of American working life. The result is a book that reads less like a document and more like a living, breathing chorus.
Nearly fifty years after its initial publication, Working remains one of the most important works of oral history ever published. The New York Times Book Review praised its “incredible abundance of marvelous beings” and “very special electricity and emotional power.” The Boston Globe called it “magnificent . . . a work of art” and declared, ”To read it is to hear America talking.”
Few books have captured the American experience with such raw, unfiltered power. First published in 1974, Working is Studs Terkel’s landmark work of oral history, a sweeping, intimate portrait of labor in America told entirely through the voices of those who live it.
Drawn from over one hundred interviews with workers across every rung of American society—gravediggers and studio heads, spot-welders and stockbrokers, waitresses and corporate executives—Working does what no economic report or policy paper it puts a human face on the meaning of work. These are not statistics. These are real people, speaking in their own words, about pride and monotony, dignity and alienation, and the daily question that quietly defines us Does what I do matter?
Terkel’s genius lies in the architecture of the book itself. Contrasting voices from the same industries are placed side by side, revealing the fault lines of class, power, and identity that run beneath the surface of American working life. The result is a book that reads less like a document and more like a living, breathing chorus.
Nearly fifty years after its initial publication, Working remains one of the most important works of oral history ever published. The New York Times Book Review praised its “incredible abundance of marvelous beings” and “very special electricity and emotional power.” The Boston Globe called it “magnificent . . . a work of art” and declared, ”To read it is to hear America talking.”
Kindle Edition
Expected publication March 16, 2027
About the author
Studs Terkel
80 books431 followersLouis "Studs" Terkel was an American author, historian, actor, and broadcaster. He received the Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction in 1985 for "The Good War", and is best remembered for his oral histories of common Americans, and for hosting a long-running radio show in Chicago.
Terkel was acclaimed for his efforts to preserve American oral history. His 1985 book "The Good War: An Oral History of World War Two", which detailed ordinary peoples' accounts of the country's involvement in World War II, won the Pulitzer Prize. For "Hard Times: An Oral History of the Great Depression", Terkel assembled recollections of the Great Depression that spanned the socioeconomic spectrum, from Okies, through prison inmates, to the wealthy. His 1974 book, "Working" also was highly acclaimed. In 1995, he received the Chicago History Museum "Making History Award" for Distinction in Journalism and Communications. In 1997, Terkel was elected a member of The American Academy of Arts and Letters. Two years later, he received the George Polk Career Award in 1999.
Terkel was acclaimed for his efforts to preserve American oral history. His 1985 book "The Good War: An Oral History of World War Two", which detailed ordinary peoples' accounts of the country's involvement in World War II, won the Pulitzer Prize. For "Hard Times: An Oral History of the Great Depression", Terkel assembled recollections of the Great Depression that spanned the socioeconomic spectrum, from Okies, through prison inmates, to the wealthy. His 1974 book, "Working" also was highly acclaimed. In 1995, he received the Chicago History Museum "Making History Award" for Distinction in Journalism and Communications. In 1997, Terkel was elected a member of The American Academy of Arts and Letters. Two years later, he received the George Polk Career Award in 1999.
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