cover image Career Crash: America's New Crisis -- And Who Survives

Career Crash: America's New Crisis -- And Who Survives

Barry Glassner. Simon & Schuster, $20.5 (0pp) ISBN 978-0-671-69026-7

The American landscape is now littered with disenchanted workers and bankrupt businesses. What has happened to the American expectation of affluence? Glassner, a sociologist and the author of Bodies: Why We Look the Way We Do (And How We Feel About It) , has written a captivating study of this vexing phenomenon, expecially its effect on the baby boomers who are ``far less pleased with their jobs than were older people'' even though they ``had more opportunities and advantages than any generation in American history.'' Using case studies, Glassner investigates work patterns ``before, while, and after boomers' careers fall apart.'' He describes ``downsized achievers'' seeking a life outside Wall Street and corporate law offices; ``career divorcees'' pursuing entrepreneurial opportunities; ``crashing couples'' facing the trauma of midlife; and others. His thoughts on the ``victors'' who were able to turn life crises into growth opportunities are especially absorbing. Fortune Book Club selection. (Feb.)