Product Description
From the beet fields of North Dakota to the wilderness campgrounds of California to an Amazon warehouse in Texas, people who once might have kicked back to enjoy their sunset years are hard at work. Underwater on mortgages or finding that Social Security comes up short, they're hitting the road in astonishing numbers, forming a new community of nomads: RV and van-dwelling migrant laborers, or "workampers."
Building on her groundbreaking Harper's cover story, "The End of Retirement," which brought attention to these formerly settled members of the middle class, Jessica Bruder follows one such RVer, Linda, between physically taxing seasonal jobs and reunions of her new van-dweller family, or "vanily." Bruder tells a compelling, eye-opening tale of both the economy's dark underbelly and the extraordinary resilience, creativity, and hope of these hardworking, quintessential Americans―many of them single women―who have traded rootedness for the dream of a better life.
Building on her groundbreaking Harper's cover story, "The End of Retirement," which brought attention to these formerly settled members of the middle class, Jessica Bruder follows one such RVer, Linda, between physically taxing seasonal jobs and reunions of her new van-dweller family, or "vanily." Bruder tells a compelling, eye-opening tale of both the economy's dark underbelly and the extraordinary resilience, creativity, and hope of these hardworking, quintessential Americans―many of them single women―who have traded rootedness for the dream of a better life.
Reviews/Praise
“Karen White's clearly enunciated, steady-paced narration nicely relates this densely packed information that is essential for all public libraries, especially those in communities experiencing this phenomenon.” —Library Journal Starred Review Audio
“Narrator Karen White's no-nonsense, energetic reading sounds like an enthusiastic reporter researching and reporting every aspect of a topic she cares deeply about.” —Sound Commentary
"Visceral and haunting reporting.” —Booklist Starred Review
“A must-read that is simultaneously hopeless and uplifting and certainly unforgettable.” —Library Journal Starred Review
“Excellent . . . Engaging, highly relevant immersion journalism.” —Kirkus Starred Review
“Intimate, personal, and entertaining, even as the author critiques the economic factors behind the trend.” —Publishers Weekly
“Bruder tells [this] story with gripping insight, detail and candor." —Peter Simon, Buffalo News