Cover Image: Work

Work

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Member Reviews

Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

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Work is a stark and ambitious review of the history of work, in biological, physical and anthropological contexts, tying them neatly together to ask just why we work longer now than our ancient ancestors ever did. It travails through agriculture, the rise of cities, jobs that seemingly exist just to keep us busy, and encroaching automation.

I struggled initially with Suzman's attempts to explore the scientific concepts of work, and am not sure if he was really the person to explore them. However, the point did tie together that there may be things we do simply to expend energy. Equally, in the anthropological and prehistoric human sections, Suzman does seem to make a few assumptions without necessarily supplying evidence (e.g. that because language emerged from grooming, females played a more important role than males).

It is a fascinating book, and the last few chapters do offer some substantial food for thought, in how we work longer hours to acquire things we don't really need. Summing it up in that way doesn't make the message seem too revolutionary, but nonetheless the journey is worth it.

(As a side note, I would like to argue for a moratorium on the use of the word 'fake news' in non-Twitter contexts.)

Thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury for a ARC copy of this book.

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A truly fascinating read! I learnt a myriad of things. A book that gives much food for thought and that has immense political relevance in this day and age, when we are repeatedly told that working and consuming are the sole answers to living a comfortable life.

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'Work' is an absolutely fascinating book. I am blown away by how the subject of work is looked at through so many disciplines. It covers anthropology, physics, biology, economics, psychology and so much more. This has changed my views on what work actually means and why we do it. So in depth and simply brilliant.

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Fascinating and depressing in equal measure. Everyone knows there is something wrong with the way we currently live and work, but James Suzman's book helps to show exactly what it is - an important read that feels of the moment.

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This book has been rigorously researched and compiled but wasn't as I expected, which shouldn't detract from anyone else's enjoyment.
I found that the content was about 'work' in an abstract way. I was expecting a book on the subject of employment, which isn't what this book is. Maybe my expectations and preconceptions coloured how I read this book, its extraordinarily academic, and would undoubtedly be an excellent addition to study.

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Work by James Suzman has an intriguing perspective and wasn’t at all what I expected. (And that’s definitely NOT a criticism!) The first question is: what is work? You and I might see pottering in the garden as a pleasant leisure activity but would someone employed and paid to work in someone else’s garden describe it in the same way or would they call it work? As Suzman says, “… the only thing that differentiates work from leisure is context and whether we are being paid to do something or are paying to do it.” I expected a fairly dry book that took us through the history of agricultural workers; factory workers’ conditions during the Industrial Revolution; the much more physically comfortable office jobs of today; and ending with predictions of what will be like in 50-100 years’ time.

I was sooooooooo wrong!

The book explores two main ideas. The first is the physicist’s concept of work as the transformation of energy. Do bacteria work? Plants? Carthorses? Suzman’s description of humans outsourcing some of their energy needs to flames and thus gaining leisure time is really thought-provoking.

The second strand looks at the cultural aspects of work. It is wide-ranging, covering the way in which we feel life has purpose when we work; the way in which communities form within cities, e.g. Brick Lane in London being famous for curry; and several other aspects. Suzman suggest that the mid-1800s “marked the beginning of many people viewing the work they did exclusively as a means to purchase more stuff”. Suzman’s writing is incredibly clear, making his complex ideas very easy to follow. With many science books, I often have to resort to a dictionary – but not this one.

I do like the low-profile witticisms such as low entropy states being “like children’s bedrooms when the children are forced to tidy up”. And I was enthralled by lovely bits of prose such as “the evolutionary dance that shapes the destinies of different organisms”. Suzman refers to the work of people like JK Galbraith and Frederick Winslow Taylor and his influence upon Henry Ford’s factory but he also draws upon less familiar names and research.

#Work #NetGalley

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I learned a lot reading this book as it's full of food for thought and you cannot help reflecting on what you read and your own ideas.
It's not an easy and fast read but one of those book you have to read a bit at the time as it's not only a story of work but also a reflection on what work is and the changes of the work values during history.
I strongly recommend it as it's excellent.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

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I started this book through Pigeonhole, but was also approved soon after on NetGalley, so my review goes for both.

All in all a very interesting read, although a little dry, which made it a little longer for me to read than I usually do (I admit I read it in a period where I was quite tired, and would’ve needed a lighter style).

This book gives us a lot of things to think about, from the origins of humanity and our relationship with ‘work’ at the time, to how it is now (and, interestingly, how what used to be work, such as hunting or sewing, has now become a hobby for a lot of people). More than once, I realised I was reading something that should’ve been obvious, yet I had never seen it that way, and as a result, it made me want to research this some more.

Humanity in general has a very complex approach to work, in that it has come to define us in ways that are sometimes good, and sometimes not so good (I’m thinking of the way unemployed people are too often viewed as “loafers” and “moochers”…), but is also something we crave through the recognition and social contacts it provides us. It’s food for thought, really: in a utopian world where we wouldn’t need to work to live, would we really do nothing, or wouldn’t we find work of a different type to fulfil those needs?

3.5 stars

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Thank you to NetGalley for letting me read this.

This book looks at work in all its aspects, starting with the scientific definition and moving on to the social and psychological aspects of what we think of as work in day to day language. It's a fascinating exploration, with lots of information pulled together and linked to form a coherent view. I was particularly interested in the ideas about how our "work" informs our world view - hunter gatherers seeing the world as a bountiful mother, farmers being far more transactional. Our complex societies are descended from those farming communities - maybe if we held off working the planet for everything we can get from it, we'd be in a better place.

It was particularly interesting to read this book now, at the end of lockdown, when so many people have been working from home. Suzman talks about the importance of work in generating meaningful activity, but the social aspect is also important. We are social animals.

It's a good read. I didn't have to work at it at all. Sorry. That was a terrible line.

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This was excellent. It gave me so much food for thought - for example, if machines have helped us be more productive than 150 years ago, why are we still working 40 hours a week rather than, say, 15? How come we grow our food when it could take less time and effort to forage and hunt?
I liked the different chapters and the history of work as a concept, the values we give to work, and the future of work with the development of artificial intelligence. It was well-written and really interesting.

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Work by James Suzman is a fascinating book which took a long time for me to read because I had to keep stopping and thinking about the content.

All aspects of the word “work” are explored in Suzman’s wide ranging analysis, from physics to expending energy to careers. The most interesting thread explores the move from a hunter-gatherer economy to agriculture to the industrial revolution and now the post-industrial knowledge economy and (maybe) the dying days of capitalism.

A recommended read for the thoughtful.

Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for providing a review copy in exchange for honest feedback.

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I never liked working, and I thought I was a lazy person, but after reading this book, I think differently. The amount of things I've learnt from this book is enormous, and now I think I need to reread it. I'll buy the paperback as soon as it is out and will keep this book in my library.

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