Title: Boomer nation : the largest and richest generation ever, and how it changed America /
Authors: Gillon, Steven M.
Publisher: Free Press,
Year: 2004
Subjects: Baby boom generation United States.; Baby boom generation United States Biography.; United States Social conditions
Abstract: "Boomer Nation will for the first time offer an incisive look into this generation that has redefined America's culture in so many ways, from women's rights and civil rights to religion and politics. Steve Gillon combines firsthand reporting of the lives of six Boomers and their families with a broad look at postwar American history in a fascinating mix of biography and history. His characters, like America itself, reflect a variety of heritages : rich and poor, black and white, immigrant and native born. Their lives take very different paths, yet are shaped by key events and trends in similar ways. They put a human face on the Boomer generation, showing what it means to grow up amid widespread prosperity, with an explosion of democratic autonomy that led to great upheavals but also a renewal from below of our churches, industries, and even the armed forces." "When the "greatest generation" was young and not yet at war, it was widely derided as selfish and spoiled. Only in hindsight, long after the sacrifices of World War II, did it gain its sterling reputation. Today, as Boomer America rises to the challenges of the war on terror, we may be on the cusp of reevaluation of the generation of Presidents Bush and Clinton. That generation has helped make America the richest, strongest nation on the planet, and as Gillon's book proves, it has had more influence on the rest of us than any other group."--Jacket.
Contents: Introduction : the long boom -- Cast of characters -- pt. 1. The cult of youth : 1945-1978. The Boomer generation -- The Vietnam division -- Growing pains -- Finding God -- pt. 2. The great shift : 1978-1992. The prolonged adolescence of Donny Deutsch -- The way we wish we lived now -- The new power politics -- The "second stage" and other struggles for women -- The new fundamentalism -- Boomer culture -- pt. 3. Boomer nation : 1992-2002. Gaining control : at what cost? -- The new bosses -- New challenges, lost opportunities -- Epilogue : we are all Boomers now.