Although it is now well established that unemployment is detrimental to health and well being, most of us assume that a well structured, rewarding leisure activity would be preferable to paid work. John Haworth challenges these assumptions and shows that the very constriction of work, like having to perform a task we wouldn't otherwise choose, are often the most rewarding in the end. reviews the current literature and complements it with the findings of the most recent research to provide a serious and fascinating study of the most important areas of adult life. It raises as many questions as it answers; for instance, if paid work is better than a leisure activity, what's the use of looking forward to retirement? will be of interest not only to psychologists, but also to a wide range of professionals involved in social policy and the leisure industry.