Through 67 interviews and 59 photographs, It’s a Living reveals the energy and struggle of the world of work in Vietnam today. A goldfish peddler installing aquariums, a business school graduate selling shoes on the sidewalk, a college student running an extensive multi-level sales network, and a promotion girl intent on moving into management are just a few of the people profiled.
Based on frank and freewheeling interviews conducted by students, the book engages a broad range of Vietnamese, both living in Vietnam and abroad, on their feelings about work, life and getting ahead. By providing a ground-level view of the texture of daily working life in the midst of rapid and unsettling change, the book reveals Vietnam today as a place where ordinary people are leveraging whatever assets they have, not just to survive, but to make a better life for themselves.
Based on frank and freewheeling interviews conducted by students, the book engages a broad range of Vietnamese, both living in Vietnam and abroad, on their feelings about work, life and getting ahead. By providing a ground-level view of the texture of daily working life in the midst of rapid and unsettling change, the book reveals Vietnam today as a place where ordinary people are leveraging whatever assets they have, not just to survive, but to make a better life for themselves.
350 pages | 5 1/2 x 7 1/2 | © 2013
Asian Studies: Southeast Asia and Australia
Geography: Urban Geography
Sociology: Occupations, Professions, Work
Table of Contents
foreword
preface
acknowledgements
contents
contributors
notes to readers
introduction
GROWING farmer
butcher
scrap food collector
bonsai grower
FEEDING rice liquor maker
tào phó maker
chè maker
phỏ cook
taco truck cook
KFC employee
BUILDING construction worker
surveyor
tea company director
MOVING bus fee collector
railway crossing guard
wounded veteran moving service owner-operator
motorbike parker
tourism company director
MAKING statue craftsman
áo dài tailor
garment factory worker
electronics factory worker
artist
art forger
film director
SELLING flower seller
fish seller
adult store salesperson
car dealer
promotion girl
MANAGING homemaker
deputy director of strategy
wedding planner
multilevel marketer
street-side shoe seller
INVESTING bank employee
pawnshop owner
bookie
lottery ticket seller
chief operations officer
PROTECTING rat catcher
security guard
army private
prison inmate
REPAIRING knife sharpener
& RECYCLING electrical appliance repairer
motorbike mechanic
recycler
CLEANING domestic helper
shoe shiner
laundromat owner
GROOMING barber
scale lady
grey hair plucker
PLAYING ball boys
bar manager
karaoke bar owner
mama-san
hotel receptionist
TEACHING kindergarten teacher
& LEARNING elementary school teacher
calligrapher
buddhist nun
CARING nurse
masseuse
professional carer
bone cleaner
preface
acknowledgements
contents
contributors
notes to readers
introduction
GROWING farmer
butcher
scrap food collector
bonsai grower
FEEDING rice liquor maker
tào phó maker
chè maker
phỏ cook
taco truck cook
KFC employee
BUILDING construction worker
surveyor
tea company director
MOVING bus fee collector
railway crossing guard
wounded veteran moving service owner-operator
motorbike parker
tourism company director
MAKING statue craftsman
áo dài tailor
garment factory worker
electronics factory worker
artist
art forger
film director
SELLING flower seller
fish seller
adult store salesperson
car dealer
promotion girl
MANAGING homemaker
deputy director of strategy
wedding planner
multilevel marketer
street-side shoe seller
INVESTING bank employee
pawnshop owner
bookie
lottery ticket seller
chief operations officer
PROTECTING rat catcher
security guard
army private
prison inmate
REPAIRING knife sharpener
& RECYCLING electrical appliance repairer
motorbike mechanic
recycler
CLEANING domestic helper
shoe shiner
laundromat owner
GROOMING barber
scale lady
grey hair plucker
PLAYING ball boys
bar manager
karaoke bar owner
mama-san
hotel receptionist
TEACHING kindergarten teacher
& LEARNING elementary school teacher
calligrapher
buddhist nun
CARING nurse
masseuse
professional carer
bone cleaner