American Bulk Audiobook By Emily Mester cover art

American Bulk

Essays on Excess

Pre-order: Try for $0.00
Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

American Bulk

By: Emily Mester
Narrated by: Chloe Cannon
Pre-order: Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Pre-order for $11.19

Pre-order for $11.19

Confirm pre-order
Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel

About this listen

What if we explored our relationship to consumption with the same depth and feeling we use to tell stories of great loves and losses?

Americans are caught up in bulk. We guiltily watch Amazon boxes pile up on the porch, wade through endless reviews to find the perfect product, and crave the comforting indulgence of a chain restaurant. In American Bulk, Emily Mester intertwines cultural critique and personal history to explore how the things we buy, eat, amass, and discard become an intimate part of our lives. With humor and sharp intellect, she reflects on the joys and anxieties of family Costco trips, how a seasonal stint at Ulta Beauty taught her the insidious art of the sale, and what it means to get Mall Sad. In a nuanced examination of diet culture and fatness, Mester recounts her teenage summer at fat camp and the unexpected liberation she finds there. Finally, she ventures to Storm Lake, Iowa, to reckon with her grandmother's abandoned hoard, excavating the dysfunction that lies at the heart of her family's obsession with stuff. American Bulk introduces listeners to a striking new literary talent from the American heartland, one who dares to ask us to regard consumption not with guilt but with grace and empathy.

©2025 Emily Mester (P)2024 Tantor Media
Marketing & Sales Popular Culture
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

What listeners say about American Bulk

Average customer ratings

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.