Why do we show up to the jobs we’ve chosen? Or why don't we? How has the upheaval of the past few years changed our experience of work? To coincide with the fiftieth anniversary of Studs Terkel’s legendary Working, we celebrate the release of Mark Larson’s Working in the 21st Century: An Oral History of American Work in a Time of Social and Economic Transformation. 

In conversation with Hull-House Director Liesl Olson and Curatorial Manager Ross Jordan, Larson will discuss his own relationship to Studs Terkel, and share a selection of intimate, honest, and illuminating recordings from the interviews he conducted for the book. Refreshments will be served and books will be on sale from The Understudy. 

“We’ve needed this book for a long time. Much has changed in the fifty years since Studs Terkel published “Working,” and Mark Larson explores the new world of work with the same sensitivity and patience, the same ability to lead people to revelations both bright and tragic about what their work is, what it means to them, and to all of us.”

— Thomas Dyja, author of "The Third Coast" and "New York, New York, New York"

This event is FREE & open to the public. RSVP is appreciated, but not required.

MARK LARSON is an award-winning educator who has worked at Evanston Township High School, the Field Museum, Lincoln Park Zoo, and National Louis University. He is the author of several other books, including Ensemble: An Oral History of Chicago Theater (2019).