by Joseph Fedcamp ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2010
Memoir as social commentary, but far more of the former than the latter.
Awards & Accolades
Our Verdict
GET IT
Google Rating
A man chooses freedom over stability in an uncertain job market and gains a unique perspective on working in America.
After four years spent in a go-nowhere communications job in Columbus, Ohio, Fedcamp is fed up and opts out of the traditional nine-to-five grind to take on a string of temporary and freelance employment opportunities. For Fedcamp, no job is too small, no task too ludicrous and even in a climate where job security is revered, his motivation and open-mindedness offers him the possibility to do the unthinkable—work outside the system and become the eponymous “permanent temporary.” Fedcamp’s book is his firsthand account of this undertaking as he travels the country, taking on numerous roles in pursuit of a paycheck and avoiding the mundane trap of unsatisfying drudgery in the late ’90s and into the new millennium. The author presents his story as social science but it reads like a memoir, as much a list of the author’s grievances in his various professions as it is a chronicle of the professions themselves. While these criticisms are valid (the sheer amount of corporate culture’s incompetence assures that), the digressive, often lecturing tone invokes more sympathy for its targets than ire for their wrongdoing, undercutting much of the hopeful enthusiasm the book generates. Still, there are loads of great tips and lessons to be found here, from navigating office work and coworker dynamics to the importance of managing one’s time and the satisfaction inherent to income-based tasks in our society. It’s in the social-science department that the book comes up short, with too many of its conclusions based on a single person’s anecdotal evidence and no supplemental studies or other accounts that might solidify the conclusions as fact. The writing is straightforward in style, repetitive but engaging, and for a book told as nontraditionally as the work philosophy it espouses, it never loses its way, remaining entertaining throughout.
Memoir as social commentary, but far more of the former than the latter.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-1847285089
Page Count: 247
Publisher: Hillfield and Company
Review Posted Online: June 22, 2011
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Share your opinion of this book
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996
This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996
ISBN: 0-15-100227-4
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996
Share your opinion of this book
More by E.T.A. Hoffmann
BOOK REVIEW
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson
BOOK REVIEW
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis
by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955
An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.
Pub Date: Feb. 23, 1955
ISBN: 0670717797
Page Count: -
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1955
Share your opinion of this book
More by Ludwig Bemelmans
BOOK REVIEW
developed by Ludwig Bemelmans ; illustrated by Steven Salerno
BOOK REVIEW
by Ludwig Bemelmans ; illustrated by Steven Salerno
BOOK REVIEW
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Hey there, book lover.
We’re glad you found a book that interests you!
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Don’t fret. We’ll find you.