Reviews

Fight Like Hell: The Untold History of American Labor, by Kim Kelly

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flexmentallo's review against another edition

informative medium-paced

2.75

The organization of this book just doesn't work for me. On its face, I like the elements: Special attention paid to untold labor history (women, people of color, particularly marginalized industries) is always useful, and organizing the book by types of labor was a novel concept on its face. Unfortunately, I don't think Kelly manages to do what Dan Jones pulled off in Powers and Thrones, where each different class had a distinct story that still built to a larger narrative. Here, instead, we have basically a bunch of loosely connected short stories that all basically follow the same arc. At its worst, it reads like an encyclopedia: Here is this person, here is when they operated, here is a single story about them.

It's an interesting corrective to labor histories that focus too much on straight white men (and refuse to discuss why those straight white men were at the forefront of those movements) but it never cohered for me as its own book.

breakyrteeth's review against another edition

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5.0

wow i learned so much reading this. kim kelly is a great writer

gbrandt02's review

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informative inspiring fast-paced

3.5

I think this book is much better consumed as an print or ebook than as an audiobook. I started with the audiobook and had a hard time following the storyline, especially with all the acronyms. I switched to an ebook and it was much easier to follow, though I usually prefer reading audiobooks. I learned a lot and it inspired me to get more involved in the labor movement. I also really liked the inclusion of women and POC in the stories she told.

cloudss's review against another edition

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informative inspiring fast-paced

5.0

back half of this book is NUTS. airways, sex workers, steel, & prison were my favorite chapters. briefly touches on most popular & known labor history to put lesser known & rarely discussed labor organizing in proper context. Very well done. Less text book & more filling in gaps.

queers in steel & air & historical shipping fascinating. focuses on women in history of labor where mostly only men’s battles have been previously described.