Product Details
- Cover Type:
- 320 Pages
- Publisher: Saint Martin's Press
- Publication Date: May 2017
- ISBN: SSASSEBEEVANISHINGAMERICANADU9781250114402
The Vanishing American Adult: Our Coming-Of-Age Crisis--And How to Rebuild a Culture of Self-Reliance
Publisher's Description
America's youth are in crisis. Raised by well-meaning but overprotective parents and coddled by well-meaning but misbegotten government programs, they are ill-equipped to survive in our highly-competitive global economy.
Many of the coming-of-age rituals that have defined the American experience since the Founding: learning the value of working with your hands, leaving home to start a family, becoming economically self-reliant--are being delayed or skipped altogether. The statistics are daunting: 30% of college students drop out after the first year, and only 4 in 10 graduate. One in three 18-to-34 year-olds live with their parents.
From these disparate phenomena: Nebraska Senator Ben Sasse who as president of a Midwestern college observed the trials of this generation up close, sees an existential threat to the American way of life.
In The Vanishing American Adult, Sasse diagnoses the causes of a generation that can't grow up and offers a path for raising children to become active and engaged citizens. He identifies core formative experiences that all young people should pursue: hard work to appreciate the benefits of labor, travel to understand deprivation and want, the power of reading, the importance of nurturing your body--and explains how parents can encourage them.
Our democracy depends on responsible, contributing adults to function properly--without them America falls prey to populist demagogues. A call to arms, The Vanishing American Adult will ignite a much-needed debate about the link between the way we're raising our children and the future of our country.
Endorsements (${ productEndorsements.length })
“Ben Sasses book is not an angry diatribe against the younger generation. Nor is it a call to return to an idyllic vision of days gone by. Rather, its a practical, insightful call to all Americans to reject passivity, embrace initiative, and boldly approach the future with purpose and vision.”
Jim Daly
President, Focus on the Family
“Ben Sasse is a good Senator, a great thinker and an even better writer. His book tells the truth about what truly ails America. Its not partisan politics. Its us our families, and our loss of confidence in the future. He argues effectively that our national destiny depends less on what happens in Washington and more on what we do at home. But take heart Sasseoffers powerful solutions, both personal and universal, that will restore our faith in the future and our responsibilities to each other as parents, neighbors, and citizens of the greatest country on earth.”
Dr. Frank Luntz
CBS News & Fox News Analyst
“As we struggle to overcome the spiritual decay of the digital age, it's incredibly heartening that at least one man in Washington gets it and wants to help.”
Mollie Z. Hemingway
Senior Editor, The Federalist
“Y'all, a senator wrote an interesting book! That's basically a miracle. Somewhere between "the kids are all right" and "get off my lawn" exists Ben Sasse's The Vanishing American Adult, and it's a fascinating place to be. At a time when adolescence has become a destination, rather than a journey, Sasse asks us to wrestle with remaking it. Lets get kids moving again through the hard work of becoming grown-ups. Avoiding the process could be especially perilous for a nation founded by a bunch of young people with an audacious idea and the will to fight for it, in the hopes that generations to come would be gritty enough do the same.”
Mary Katharine Ham
CNN
“Being an adolescent myself, this book shed some light on my situation and I'm glad my wife was kind enough to read it to me. In all seriousness, even though my alter ego doesn't read, I'm a dad and I do. Ben is dead on point on every page and this book should become required reading for every parent. Bravo Ben!! (P.S. Please send another copy because I've got pudding on this one.?)”
Dan Whitney
A.K.A., Larry the Cable Guy
“Historian, dad, and former college president Ben Sasse has nailed it: we're failing our kids. Each generation must mold the next into solid citizens at home, at work, and in the city square. This book is a well-timed rebuke and a time-tested recipejust what America needs.”
U.S. Senator Marco Rubio
“Ben Sasse is a thoughtful father, historian and Senator. And he has written a non-political book about one of the most important policy topics of the dayhow to raise self-reliant and adventurous children. Any parent will read this alternating between "damn right" and guilt pangs. The book is practical, helpful and conversational. I wish it had been written 20 years ago!”
U.S. Senator Tim Kaine
“Couple years ago, somebody told me a senator from Nebraska was tweeting about the essential business of castrating bulls. I didn't know who Ben Sasse was, but I was intrigued his use of social media. I've since met him, and I like him. If you read this book, you will too. It's excellent. In particular, the "Lessons from the Ranch" section should be required reading for every parent, every child, and every elected official in America. This really is a book for everyonewell, except the bulls.”
Mike Rowe
Creator and Host of Dirty Jobs
“I know Ben Sasse as one of the most important emerging voices in our national dialogueplain-spoken, brilliant, and unafraid to speak his mind. Whether we agree or disagree, when he speaksI'm listening. And when he writes, I'm definitely reading.”
U.S. Senator Cory Booker
“Heartfelt advice an earnest critique of American youth.”
Kirkus Reviews
“Deeply thoughtful, delightfully personal, and bravely ecumenical in scope, Sasses guide for stemming the tide of delayed responsibility showcases what is both practical and possible.”
Booklist
Product Description
Publisher's Description
America's youth are in crisis. Raised by well-meaning but overprotective parents and coddled by well-meaning but misbegotten government programs, they are ill-equipped to survive in our highly-competitive global economy.
Many of the coming-of-age rituals that have defined the American experience since the Founding: learning the value of working with your hands, leaving home to start a family, becoming economically self-reliant--are being delayed or skipped altogether. The statistics are daunting: 30% of college students drop out after the first year, and only 4 in 10 graduate. One in three 18-to-34 year-olds live with their parents.
From these disparate phenomena: Nebraska Senator Ben Sasse who as president of a Midwestern college observed the trials of this generation up close, sees an existential threat to the American way of life.
In The Vanishing American Adult, Sasse diagnoses the causes of a generation that can't grow up and offers a path for raising children to become active and engaged citizens. He identifies core formative experiences that all young people should pursue: hard work to appreciate the benefits of labor, travel to understand deprivation and want, the power of reading, the importance of nurturing your body--and explains how parents can encourage them.
Our democracy depends on responsible, contributing adults to function properly--without them America falls prey to populist demagogues. A call to arms, The Vanishing American Adult will ignite a much-needed debate about the link between the way we're raising our children and the future of our country.
About The Author
Product Details
- Cover Type:
- 320 Pages
- Publisher: Saint Martin's Press
- Publication Date: May 2017
- ISBN: SSASSEBEEVANISHINGAMERICANADU9781250114402