Robert B. Reich
Former U.S. Secretary of Labor
“Lindsay Owens has written a thrilling true crime story about how the largest corporate monopolies in America have hatched a scheme to pick our pockets. Gouged is the book corporate America does not want you to read.”
Heather McGhee
Author of The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together
“Gouged uncovers a hidden cause of the affordability crisis: algorithms that set prices, which often means tailoring the price for individuals and fixing the price across markets. Corporate greed is nothing new; what’s new is the technology that has made competition, fairness, and transparency obsolete. As a result, consumers are paying more for everything from rent to medicine to groceries. Owens’s book reveals the new ways that big tech is allowing big corporations to rig the game, and what we can do to fight back.”
Elizabeth Warren
U.S. Senator
“Gouged is a must-read for anyone wondering how everything got so damn expensive and who is profiting off your misery. This book is for students renting their first apartment, parents trying to feed their families, travelers paying way too much to fly, and consumers getting ripped off at every turn by AI-fueled pricing schemes. Lindsay Owens is a brilliant writer and a phenomenal investigator who excels at deconstructing the complex into a riveting story—and she of course has a plan to fight back. If you’re sick and tired of being squeezed by giant corporations and just want life to be a little easier and much more affordable, this book is for you.”
Rana Foroohar
Author of Homecoming: The Path to Prosperity in a Post-Global World
“Ever have the sneaking suspicion that you’re paying more for something online than you should be, or than your neighbor is? You probably are. And you should be outraged. Lindsay Owens tells us how we got here and what we should do about it. Required reading for all American consumers and policymakers.”
Helaine Olen
Author of Pound Foolish: Exposing the Dark Side of the Personal Finance Industry
“In Gouged, Lindsay Owens reveals how the world is undergoing a revolution in how companies price goods for sale—and, no surprise, corporate America’s predatory financial actions do not favor you. Gouged is not just incisive and revelatory; it is one of the most important books of the year.”
Tim Wu
Author of The Age of Extraction: How Tech Platforms Conquered the Economy and Threaten Our Future Prosperity
“Too much of American business now depends on bilking customers when they are weakest, and gouging has gone from an occasional outrage to a constant aggravation. Lindsay Owens’s fascinating, engaging, and often enraging book will leave you wondering how we let things get this bad and why we can’t do better.”
Zachary D. Carter
Author of The Price of Peace: Money, Democracy, and the Life of John Maynard Keynes
“Gouged is a state-of-the-art inquiry into the reinvention of the ripoff happening right now in boardrooms across the country. Lindsay Owens has written an essential portrait of corporate America’s digital underbelly.”
Jennifer Taub
Author of Big Dirty Money: Making White Collar Criminals Pay
“Gouged is an entertaining exposé into the high-tech methods (from dynamic and drip pricing to dark patterns) that big businesses and ruthless employers use to cheat consumers and workers. With this brilliant debut, Lindsay Owens offers us shocking stories and essential strategies we need to fight together for fair prices and wages.”
