A WORKING STIFF'S MANIFESTO (2002)

As a former busboy/messenger/retail clerk/data processor/pizza delivery guy, it's easy for me to appreciate fellow tales of working-man woes, and Levison has accumulated woes aplenty. In this workplace retrospective, the author chronicles experiences from many of his 42 jobs, including shifts as a bartender, fish cutter, cable thief, mover...well, just about everything under the sun (and moon). There's no grand rumination on the meaning of life, or anything, here -- but then again, that's in keeping with the actual transient nature of the subject matter; Levison takes these jobs precisely because he dreads looking at the bigger, long-term picture. The work in question may be deadly boring, but the author's slacker ethos and deadpan delivery make reading Manifesto a job well worth taking.