Audiobook Sample

Listen to the sample to experience the story.

Please wait while we verify your browser...

  • Title: Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America
  • Author: Barbara Ehrenreich
  • Narrator: Cristine McMurdo-Wallis
  • Length: 08:14:00
  • Version: Abridged
  • Release Date: 13/08/2004
  • Publisher: Recorded Books
  • Genre: Business & Economics, Non-Fiction, Social Science, Economics, HR & Office Administration
  • ISBN13: 9.78E+12
Hey bookworms and social justice warriors, Sophie Bennett here with another audiobook deep dive that’ll make you rethink everything about the American Dream.

Let’s break this down: Barbara Ehrenreich’s groundbreaking work of immersive journalism hits differently in audio format. Cristine McMurdo-Wallis’s narration transforms this already powerful exposé into an intimate, almost conspiratorial conversation about America’s dirty little secret – how impossible we’ve made survival for the working poor.

Here’s what makes this interesting: As someone who’s analyzed countless narrative formats for my ‘Future of Stories’ podcast, I can tell you Ehrenreich’s first-person experiment gains visceral impact when heard rather than read. McMurdo-Wallis perfectly captures Ehrenreich’s mix of academic precision and righteous anger, her voice shifting subtly as the author moves from anthropologist to participant in America’s low-wage nightmare.

The cultural impact here is undeniable. Listening to Ehrenreich’s three-month odyssey through minimum-wage jobs – from waitressing to housecleaning to retail – I kept flashing back to my own college summers working hotel housekeeping. But where my experience was temporary, Ehrenreich reveals the soul-crushing permanence of this existence. The audiobook’s greatest strength is how it makes systemic issues personal – when McMurdo-Wallis describes Ehrenreich’s back pain from hotel housekeeping or the mathematical impossibility of budgeting on $7/hour, you feel it in your bones.

Now for the audio experience breakdown: McMurdo-Wallis delivers what might be the perfect nonfiction narration – authoritative without being preachy, emotional without melodrama. Her pacing during key revelations (like when Ehrenreich realizes many coworkers live in cars) creates these devastating moments of pause. The production quality maintains Recorded Books’ usual high standards – crisp audio with perfect emphasis on Ehrenreich’s darkly humorous asides.

Comparison time: This pairs brilliantly with Matthew Desmond’s ‘Evicted’ (audiobook version) for a full picture of American poverty. But where Desmond takes a more traditional journalistic approach, Ehrenreich’s first-person experiment offers something more immediate in audio format – you’re not just learning about poverty, you’re experiencing the daily humiliations alongside her.

Critical perspective: Some might argue Ehrenreich’s experiment lacks true stakes (she could quit anytime) or that the 20-year-old research feels dated. But hearing it narrated in 2024, what’s terrifying is how little has changed – if anything, the affordability crisis has worsened. The audiobook format makes these contemporary connections unavoidable.

For my BookTok fam: This is prime ‘listen while angry-cleaning your apartment’ material. I’d pair it with my viral ‘Living Wage Calculator’ TikTok series for maximum impact. And if you loved the multi-dimensional experience of ‘Project Hail Mary’s alien language audio design, notice how McMurdo-Wallis uses vocal tone to distinguish between Ehrenreich’s observational voice and her exhausted worker persona.

Final recommendation: Essential listening for anyone who’s ever said ‘just get a better job.’ The audiobook’s intimacy forces confrontation with uncomfortable truths about who we value in America. Keep your podcast app ready – you’ll want to discuss this immediately after.

Stay woke and keep those earbuds charged, Soph
Sophie Bennett