This was so well written, I couldn’t put it down. Kristi is alternates between humor (which many times actually did have me laughing), acknowledging real issues she and many other women face in the corporate environment, and sharing nuggets of wisdom she picked up along the way. Highly recommend!

"For twelve years, Amazon supplied me with a high-grade lunacy I didn't know I needed until I touched it and my ambition bloomed like neon ink in water."

Kristi Coulter has composed a reflective, informative, fast-paced, and surprisingly comical memoir about her time as a high-powered Amazon director. Her story will inspire you to be more ambitious, while at the same time highlighting the multifaceted price there is to pay for being blindly driven.

I enjoyed not only learning more about the inner workings of the colossal Amazon corporation, but also Kristi's evolving perspective and advice for females in competitive work places. She perfectly nails what it feels like to be a people-pleaser, a perfectionist, a hurtful self-critic, and a child of great expectations.

The prose of the book is lyrical and heart-wrenching, and I was rooting for Kristi all the way through. The style of the book alternates throughout; from first-person retellings, historical timelines of women in the workforce, personal hour-by-hour day in the life scenarios, to open-mic-night style prose. I read the entire book on a plane ride but even weeks after, the emotions and scenes still stick with me.

"What is a job anyway, if not a chance to ruin your life?"

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Thank you, NetGalley and Farrar, Straus, and Giroux for the opportunity to read the advanced reader's copy prior to release!

The deal: This is Kristi Coulter’s memoir of the decade she spent working at Amazon. (I got an ARC from NetGalley.)

Is it worth it?: Nope. I probably would have DNF’d this if it wasn’t the only book I had on my Kindle, and it wasn’t a Saturday where I don’t give myself access to the internet. The beginning (and honestly, the rest) were so heavy with Amazon workplace minutiae that I found myself skimming for pages at a time. It was truly dumbfounding that Coulter never left? And perhaps more importantly, she never really examined the reasons why she stayed with any kind of perspective or rigor. Eventually leaving a truly nefarious workplace because you couldn’t get a promotion is very different from any flavor of radicalization. Left me wanting in so many ways.

Pairs well with: Bullshit Jobs by David Graeber, All The Gold Stars by Rainesford Stauffer, actually quitting your hell job the SECOND you have the privilege to do so

D+

Reading this book made me feel so much better about never having been "good enough" to be hired at Amazon. Kristi Coulter paints a vivid picture of an unbelievably toxic workplace in which she managed to find some value, but at an expense that many people would not find worth the trade. I'm recommending this book to every woman I know who has some professional ambition but keeps getting mashed up against the glass ceiling.

So I was incredibly excited to get this as an ARC. I’ve worked in the tech world for five years, so I thought this would be a really exciting book to read. This book completely disappointed me, especially for someone who’s lived in the tech world I don’t feel like I learned anything new or anything was really surprising to me. The book is titled exit interview and she didn’t even have a real exit interview, or even submit the form in time. The first part of the book was so boring to me with terms that did tally fully make sense and was way too granular. Around 80% into this book I was hopeful this was going to end well - but the last chapter really did nothing for the whole book.

I really enjoyed Coulter's first collection, which centered around women and alcohol, and looked forward to her take on women and corporate America. She did not disappoint! I really enjoyed her exploration of intense work environments and the toll they take (drawing from her time at Amazon). Just as Coulter hit the timing of the sober curious movement with her first book, her second draws on the emotions and reconfiguring I think many people are sorting through when it comes to their post-pandemic careers. And, of course, she's quite funny :)

Intoxicating.
Hilarious.
Triggering AF.

Kristi Coulter must be addicted to adrenaline rushes. Because 10 years at Amazon is one wild and crazy ride.

Key topics:
Startup culture
Feminism
Gender inequality
Hustle culture
Alcoholism
Recovery
And, much more!

5 🌟 for this advanced readers' copy via the NetGalley app.

Highly, highly recommended. If you read her debut memoir, this one is even better!

Kristi Coulter pulls back the curtain on retail giant Amazon as she tells the story of her employment there for over a decade. I personally have never worked in an environment of this type, so found it interesting but unrelatable. A few of my biggest takeaways were the frugality that Amazon apparently has in the office. This is a contrast to what I'd expect from a company of that size. I also found the description of the intensive interview process fascinating. Ultimately however, this was a DNF. I found that Coulter, although she faced many struggles at Amazon, had a lot of choice. She describes herself as quite adept at finding and adapting to new jobs. As I progressed through the book, I was left feeling that she was holding her problem when she had the opportunity to make a change. No one does something for over a decade without some autonomy in that. I was left with a bitter taste in my mouth for the Amazon behemoth without sympathy for Coulter either. I do think for the right audience, or those looking for a reason to branch out beyond Amazon when shopping, will find more to relate to.

This book was phenomenal. I'm usually not a non-fic reader, but I've read bits and pieces of Kristi's work before and knew this was going to be a can't skip.

It's not a secret that Amazon has a history of complaints surrounding their workplace culture, but this was such a long, in-depth look that I still found myself surprised. The constant restructuring was also a big question mark, and I found it super intriguing to hear about different processes that certainly should've been automated but weren't. Kristi's writing style is outstanding, and even the technical talk was readable and interesting. I'll definitely be purchasing a copy for my bookshelf!

A thoughtful, reflective memoir. This is more than just an insider's perspective on working at Amazon for many years. It's also one woman's attempt to figure out what really matters in her life.

Hell, yes! Coulter gets right to the heart of matters about working in the administration side of Amazon. Many of the issues that she experienced were similar to those I and my friends encountered in other arenas. Kudos to pointing out the toxicity in our current culture.

Much has been publicized about the working conditions in Amazon's warehouses. In Exit Interview, Kristi Coulter goes full-disclosure about being a part of the retail behemoth's administrative team. A self-professed high achiever, Coulter fed off of the thrill of the company's unconventional and sometimes unstructured workflow. Her compulsion towards chasing the corporate ladder sustained her career drive until eventually the chaos started her down the path to self-destruction. Coulter's conversational and intelligent writing style deftly conveys the sheer anxiety she felt as a cog in the Amazon wheel; but unlike Coulter, the reader finds immediate relief in remembering that they are not a fellow cog.

I loved this book! Since I work at a small bookstore it always infuriates me when people would talk about going to Amazon instead. I would educate them on what will happen to small stores if everyone keeps buying from Amazon! Rant over lol!
We have all heard the horror stories about the warehouses but it was interesting to learn that the office environment was so brutal as well. I was getting angry at how cheap and frugal they are but yet here is Bezos going off and buying a mega yacht. I laughed out loud at the exit interview part and how she also got the form to fill out after 11 plus years with the company?? Then the form didn’t go through and she had to type it all out again?
Such a great read and I look forward to telling others about it.

This workplace memoir is exceptional, but I must admit to being biased as I also worked at Amazon during the same tenure as Ms. Coulter, and at one point, in the same organization. I know many people who could have written a book like this about their tumultuous, soul-crushing, all-consuming work life at Amazon, but I doubt any of them could have done it with the eloquence presented here. I will be buying a copy of this book for all of my friends and family who are still wondering what the hell happened to me after a decade at that company.

I love memoirs about behind-the-scenes of mundane jobs and Kristi Coulter wrote the perfect one!

Exit Interview is a year-by-year depiction of her experiences working in various roles at Amazon from the mid-2000s to the mid-2010s. She has numerous positions, none easy to define, even for herself. She leaves as one of the most tenured staff at the time, topping out at an L7 promotion level after being skipped over for promotions and given greater responsibilities and expectations every year.

I appreciate that Coulter used just enough Amazon jargon and gossip to remind you that she worked at a real company while also emphasizing the physical and mental toll it took on her. The endnotes at each chapter are entertaining and add interesting depth to the situation.

There's a hint of a lack of awareness of her and her husband's privilege at times but I think that's to be expected.

Overall, I think this is a great memoir and I look forward to seeing what Kristi Coulter puts out in the future.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book.

I am a Human Resources Manager, so I really wanted to read this one.

The first few chapters are interesting. For some reason, after chapter 4,, the story started feeling disconnected and the writing felt repetitious and honestly, very bogged down.

Its a shame because this is a book I thought I would thoroughly enjoy..... it did not happen.

If pacing is off, I will automatically disconnect, unfortunately.

Enjoyed this book quite a bit, but it's a great example of a life with no work/life balance whatsoever. This author devoted 12 years of her life to relentless work and unattainable deadlines and goals at Amazon. Clearly it was a choice she made for herself, but her ultimate "goal" was always to get promoted to the next level. Needless to say the promotion never comes through, and I just about cheered when she finally decided to leave. I don't know much about her, but my hope is that her life is much more balanced today.

I was drawn to the book because of its title and didn't even look into the synopsis. The book details the highs and lows of Kristi's decade long career with Amazon. I thoroughly enjoyed her narration style! The parts were she discusses being one of the only women in a room and the instances where she talks about having to hold back tears were too real. I also loved the chapters where she rewrites advice.

A fascinating look at the culture of Amazon and the culture of work in general in this century--sharp and incisive writing and vividly sketched characters. I learned so much from reading this book that is unforgettable.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing an e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I really enjoyed reading Kristi Coulter's memoir Exit Interview, which details the ups and downs she faced during her many years at Amazon (corporate, not warehouse). Her tone is humorous, sarcastic, and relatable. This is a book about feminism and the workplace, and Coulter takes some serious subject matter and infuses dry humor to share her experiences.

Towards the last quarter of the book, I did feel that it could've been condensed a little--didn't need to hear about the minute details of so many meetings....but I appreciate her honesty and transparency in sharing so much related to the inner workings of Amazon. I'm sure when this book publishes, many at Amazon won't be thrilled to have some of this information exposed, but I still applaud Coulter for sharing her side of the story.

Recommended for readers who enjoy workplace memoirs, casual writing style, and feminist issues.

4.25 stars
Will share review on Netgalley closer to publication date