Rating: 
Summary: Could have been better
Review: ...P>A good premise, but the wrong person to write the book.
Rating: 
Summary: Good idea -- poorly executed
Review: I bought this book thinking it would be thoroughly, if not exhaustingly, researched. I was terribly disappointed. The author only had three experiences (Florida, Maine, and Minnesota) as a "low-wage earner." Each lasted no more than a month.Over and over, she demonstrated her laziness; her lack of research is just one example. For instance, she never shopped at yard sales or second-hand stores. If she had, she would have learned what many of us did during lean years and what today's immigrants know -- you can buy a collared shirt, in good condition and unstained, for $1 or less. You can buy a used "hot pot" to boil water, heat canned soup or veggies, cook small quantities of pasta, etc. You can buy a used can opener, plate, spoon, etc. for the cost of one fast-food meal. My grandmother, a single mother of five, worked two cleaning jobs (houses during the day, a truck stop at night). My parents worked in low-paying retail jobs. (My mom was on her feet seven hours every day, until she was 82.) I am the first in my family to have attended college. But I know what it's like to live on minimum wage ($2.10 in those days), working seven days a week at two jobs to make ends meet. I'm not saying it's easy (and it helps to be in your 20s or early 30s) but there are plenty of us who did it and went on to higher paying jobs. I agree with other reviewers who said they thought the author looked down on the people she worked with. Her attitude seemed to be that they were stupid drudges, victims of the system and selfish affluent people, but - not to worry - enlightened Barbara to the rescue. What a shame -- the concept of this book is excellent. If it had been properly researched and written without such a glaring "agenda," it could have sparked a valuable dialogue about issues that need to be resolved.
Rating: 
Summary: A look from inside the fishbowl
Review: In order to give a true representation of my experience with this book, I must admit one detail-- I had never heard of it before it was assigned to me. During college orientation, the book was handed out on the way out the door and I had only begun reading it on the way home as a way to save myself from a potentially mind-numbing drive home. But, to my luck and surprise, the book was good...really good.
Nickel and Dimed is more than just a study done by a group of distant scholars and intellectuals using statistics and figures to prove their point. It is an experience by one woman who wanted to move from the distant surveying position outside the fishbowl and decided to dive in and see for herself(no pun intended).
The work is clearly political, stressing the need for the living wage and better protection and aid for those who work the unseen and unregulated jobs in the United States. I learned quite a good deal from this work. It causes one to be more socially and economically aware, as well as appreciative.
Rating:
Summary: Readable, but condescending
Review: I had a hard time liking this book. It started off promising enough, but it went down-hill fast. The author makes it clear from the start that she has a Ph.D. and is over-qualified for the work she is doing. Moreover, she expects us to be impressed by her abilities to do what millions of people do everyday (ie, go to work and try to live within one's paycheck). The problem is, she barely skims the surface. Her jobs last three to four weeks, at most. Not years, like the people whose lives she is attempting to emulate. Moreover, she leaves all her jobs on a whim. This struck me as extremely irresponsible and insulting. The people who are in her book took their jobs seriously. Her usual method of quitting involved letting her co-workers know about her Ph.D. (don't forget that she has a Ph.D!) and walking out or not showing up for work (leaving her co-workers, presummably, to pick up her slack). The author never delved deep enough into the day-to-day lives of these workers. The book is at its best when the author goes through her day and whines about the work (gasp!) that she has to do. It's a good reminder of how hard low wage earners really work for their meager pay. Anyone who has lived paycheck to paycheck can relate. The problem with this book is the loss of objectivity. The author doesn't merely report her day, she injects criticisms of anyone she meets to happens to be in any managerial position. Her black and white view of worker=good/manager=bad really tries the reader's patience. If anything, this book puts a more human face on the people that perform these occupations. That is its only salvation.
Rating: 
Summary: Says it as it is.......
Review: Before I give my opinion on this very articulate and insightful book, I must say that is was appalling to read the harsh words of criticisms this book has received. There is nothing misleading about the book. Barbara, has informed the reader about the situation she is putting herself in as well as certain predefined rules for her two year journey into hardship. Now that the air is clear....let me begin by saying that the book is a melting pot of all human emotions which each and every one of us has encountered. Once I graduated with high honors from college, I was forced to take a job at a cafe due to the massive downturn in the economy. And let me tell you it was not easy....
This book is very humbling, puts things in perspective for many of us who take things for granted or who treat the low wage workers with disrespect. On the whole, I found this book delightful as well as heart rendering. Good job Barbara!!
Rating:
Summary: Good, I Liked It, and learned from it
Review: I think that this book does a good job of showing more fortunate people what life for many Americans is like. It obviously isn't completely realistic, because she did cheat sometimes, and she did have somewhat of an advantage. I disagree with one of the other reviewers when they say that most intelligent Americans already know what it is like for those people. MOST people don't undertsand why they couldn't have gone to college and had a well respected job. This book does a good job of showing that not everyone has such luck, and great opportunities in life. I think that you should definitely read this book, and hopefully, everyone who reads it will learn a lesson.
Rating:
Summary: Further Reading
Review: If you would like another unvarnished look at life, read "The Life Stories of Undistinguished Americans As Told by Themselves" by Hamilton Holt. For a close look at homelessness, read "Travels with Lizbeth" by Lars Eighner. Nothing like a healthy dose of perspective.
Rating:
Summary: The Lady Makes A Point
Review: Despite the fact that I am white, male, and tend to vote republican, I have to give Ms Ehrenreich her due. She got into the thick of things, got down and dirty, and surely had an interesting experience which yielded information many of us in the more affluent classes don't have. This is a fascinating read. Okay, so other reviewers pounded her for being somewhat elitist and snobbish and a little bit "holier than thou" and I can't completely disagree. After all, I too have John Grisham and Rush Limbaugh books in my house and I don't think that makes me intellectually her inferior as she implied.
Nonetheless, she pointed out the indignities that low wage earners suffer. These range from poor lifestyle, lack of options in life as well as oppression from nitwit low level supervisors. She made an excellent point in stating that these individuals in fact subsidize the lifestyle of the more affluent. This explains why we allow unchecked and unregulated immigration from south of the border, that is, a cheap labor supply. Therefore, we should not begrudge them social services.
Anyone who hires a housekeeper or eats in a restaurant needs to show common decency to those who serve. A medical system needs to be in place so basic medical services are available. However, Ms Ehrenreich should be aware that under the Hillary Clinton plan, she would not have been able to call her MD for prescriptions. That would have been a felony for both her and her physician for unauthorized care outside of the system.
Also, most of the fat people I know are democrats.
Rating: 
Summary: You are what you speak...
Review: What I am doing is inexcusable: I haven't yet read the book. But I enjoyed reading the reviews as much as (or perhaps more) than I am looking forward to the book itself. Readers are hereby warned that since I haven't read it, you might skip over my "review." I will be honest with you. I've been very, very poor and am now quite well off. I don't know if Ms. Ehrenreich mentioned the issue of grammar and communication skills among the "working poor." I've always felt that those without good "White English" communication skills were doomed to a life of poverty unless they had extraordinary other skills or luck to help compensate. (Like professional baseball players, etc.) It would be more interesting if her "study" identified this issue. Surely those who spoke with her during the course of her peregrinations recognized that she spoke with university educated English. That would have automatically made her "manager material" had she decided to stay long enough in any job to apply for such a position. You are what you speak...
Rating:
Summary: Not Reality
Review: Like other reviewers, the author had resources to fall back on and she knew it was temporary and could quit at anytime. I was disappointed in this book mainly because I thought it would be more about stories of the people she met while working in minimum wage jobs. It was mostly about her and what she had to do to make ends meets, etc. I would have liked to read about REAL people who do this day in and day out with no end in sight. How do they manage to get up and do it all over again each day, knowing they'll never get ahead, never get a promotion, never make a decent living? I could never quite get into the author's shoes or feel any sympathy for her knowing she was playing a role and "pretending" to live like the other half. This is a good idea for a book, but needed to be written from the perspective of the low-wage workers...like interviews with them? How they perceive their jobs, how the future looks to them, how THEY manage to stay afloat?
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