Slouching Toward Adulthood: Observations from the Not-So-Empty Nest - Hardcover

9780670023622: Slouching Toward Adulthood: Observations from the Not-So-Empty Nest
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A witty and insightful report from the parenting trenches by the mother of two "adultescents"

Millions of American parents sit down to dinner every night, wondering why fully grown children are joining them—or, more likely, grunting good-bye as they head out for another night of who knows what. Sally Koslow, a journalist, novelist, and mother of two "adultescents" digs deep to reveal what lies behind the current generation’s unwillingness—or inability—to take flight.

By delving into the latest research and conducting probing interviews with both frustrated parents and their frustrated offspring, Koslow uses humor, insight, and honest self-reflection to give voice to the issues of prolonged dependency. From the adultescent’s relationship to work (or no work), money (that convenient parental ATM), or social life, Slouching Toward Adulthood is a provocative, razor-sharp, but heartfelt cri de coeur for all the parents who sent their kids to college only to have them ricochet home with a diploma in one hand and the DVR remote in the other.

"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.

Review:
Praise for "Slouching Toward Adulthood"
"Excellent. ... At last, a serious, well-researched book about raising children which also includes that crucial characteristic every parent needs--a sense of humor."
--"USA"" Today," "Top Summer Nonfiction Pick"
"'Our offspring have simply leveraged our braggadocio, good intentions, and overinvestment, ' Koslow writes in her new book, "Slouching Toward Adulthood." They inhabit 'a broad savannah of entitlement that we've watered, landscaped, and hired gardeners to maintain.' She recommends letting the grasslands revert to forest: 'The best way for a lot of us to show our love would be to learn to un-mother and un-father.'"
--Elizabeth Kolbert, "The New Yorker"
"An eye-opener. . . . Koslow writes wittily about the infantilization of American youth as increasing numbers treat getting a job and moving out as just an option."
--"People"
"This book is hilarious! I burst out laughing on page one, and it just got funnier and funnier. But "Slouching Toward Adulthood" is also hard-hitting and painfully insightful--I found myself wincing with recognition. Backed by the latest research, Sally Koslow's thought-provoking new book should be required reading for today's parents and young adults."
--Amy Chua, author of "Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother"
"There's a Koslow in all of us who wants to strangle Hannah, the character played by Lena Dunham in the popular HBO show "Girls, " when we learn that her parents had been subsidizing her life in New York City while she worked at an unpaid internship and pursued a writing career. . . . Koslow criticizes clueless parents as much as their narcissistic offspring. She argues that babying adult children tends to yield entitled progeny who can't launch their way into the conventional phases of adulthood. Koslow offers excellent advice, which makes this book worth reading to the end."
"--""Fortune"
"Smart, with plenty of insights and a l

Praise for "Slouching Toward Adulthood"
"Excellent. ... At last, a serious, well-researched book about raising children which also includes that crucial characteristic every parent needs--a sense of humor."
--"USA Today," "Top Summer Nonfiction Pick"
"'Our offspring have simply leveraged our braggadocio, good intentions, and overinvestment, ' Koslow writes in her new book, "Slouching Toward Adulthood." They inhabit 'a broad savannah of entitlement that we've watered, landscaped, and hired gardeners to maintain.' She recommends letting the grasslands revert to forest: 'The best way for a lot of us to show our love would be to learn to un-mother and un-father.'"
--Elizabeth Kolbert, "The New Yorker"
"An eye-opener. . . . Koslow writes wittily about the infantilization of American youth as increasing numbers treat getting a job and moving out as just an option."
--"People"
"This book is hilarious! I burst out laughing on page one, and it just got funnier and funnier. But "Slouching Toward Adulthood" is also hard-hitting and painfully insightful--I found myself wincing with recognition. Backed by the latest research, Sally Koslow's thought-provoking new book should be required reading for today's parents and young adults."
--Amy Chua, author of "Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother"
"There's a Koslow in all of us who wants to strangle Hannah, the character played by Lena Dunham in the popular HBO show "Girls, " when we learn that her parents had been subsidizing her life in New York City while she worked at an unpaid internship and pursued a writing career. . . . Koslow criticizes clueless parents as much as their narcissistic offspring. She argues that babying adult children tends to yield entitled progeny who can't launch their way into the conventional phases of adulthood. Koslow offers excellent advice, which makes this book worth reading to the end."
"--""Fortune"
"Smart, with plenty of insights and a lively prose style that should keep readers, especially the book's target audience of parents, wondering why their grown-up kids are back living in their basements, engaged."
--"Booklist"
"A witty, provocative study that examines why so many millennials can't seem to launch into adulthood and now find themselves 'wandering--if not literally, then psychically.' . . . Observant and bracingly candid."
"--Kirkus Reviews"
"Sally Koslow has written a funny, shrewd, and true account of a problem the boomer generation didn't know it had created: the consequences of helicopter parenting. We've pampered our kids so much they don't want to grow up. Who can blame them? "Slouching Toward Adulthood" is the book that explains why 'the guest bedroom' is a thing of the past."
--James Atlas, author of "My Life in the Middle Ages"
"Koslow casts a keen eye on the 'not-so-empty-nest' phenomenon that besets today's baby boomer parents . . . and provides plenty of food for thought for parents and adultescents who want to understand each other and perhaps change things for the better."
--"Publishers Weekly"
"Full of research, insight, and hilarious examples of what life is like for the long-suffering parents of 'adultescents, ' "Slouching Toward Adulthood" is one of those invaluable books that identifies and illuminates a new phenomenon in our culture."
--Gretchen Rubin, author of "The Happiness Project"
"Sally Koslow has really hit on something with her incisive "Slouching Toward Adulthood." Memorable books that struck a chord about the path of life or the dissonance between parent and child--Gail Sheehy's "Passages," Nancy Friday's "My Mother/My Self"--all had a kind of kitchen-table humanity and an ability to limn the unnamed conflicts of a particular moment. Beneath its jaunty two-drinks-with-your-coolest-friend ebullience, this book, as of its moment as those books were of theirs, has that resonance, too."
--Sheila Weller, author of "Girls Like Us"
"The helicopter parent has crashed and burned. With millennials reaching adulthood it has become clear that this hovering style of parenting results in overly dependent young adults, plagued by depression or less satisfaction with their lives and anxiety, who cannot even face the workplace without the handholding their parents have led them to expect. . . . Sally Koslow [has] documented a generation so cosseted that they have lost the impetus to grow up or leave home. The over-involved parent has gone from paragon of caring to a figure of fun."
--Lisa Endlich Heffernan, "The Atlantic"


Praise for Slouching Toward Adulthood
Excellent. At last, a serious, well-researched book about raising children which also includes that crucial characteristic every parent needs a sense of humor.
USA Today, "Top Summer Nonfiction Pick"
Our offspring have simply leveraged our braggadocio, good intentions, and overinvestment, Koslow writes in her new book, Slouching Toward Adulthood. They inhabit a broad savannah of entitlement that we ve watered, landscaped, and hired gardeners to maintain. She recommends letting the grasslands revert to forest: The best way for a lot of us to show our love would be to learn to un-mother and un-father.
Elizabeth Kolbert, The New Yorker
An eye-opener. . . . Koslow writes wittily about the infantilization of American youth as increasing numbers treat getting a job and moving out as just an option.
People
This book is hilarious! I burst out laughing on page one, and it just got funnier and funnier. ButSlouching Toward Adulthoodis also hard-hitting and painfully insightful I found myself wincing with recognition. Backed by the latest research, Sally Koslow's thought-provoking new book should be required reading for today's parents and young adults.
Amy Chua, author ofBattle Hymn of the Tiger Mother
There's a Koslow in all of us who wants to strangle Hannah, the character played by Lena Dunham in the popular HBO showGirls, when we learn that her parents had been subsidizing her life in New York City while she worked at an unpaid internship and pursued a writing career. . . . Koslow criticizes clueless parents as much as their narcissistic offspring. She argues that babying adult children tends to yield entitled progeny who can't launch their way into the conventional phases of adulthood. Koslow offers excellent advice, which makes this book worth reading to the end.
Fortune
Smart, with plenty of insights and a lively prose style that should keep readers, especially the book's target audience of parents, wondering why their grown-up kids are back living in their basements, engaged.
Booklist
A witty, provocative study that examines why so many millennials can't seem to launch into adulthood and now find themselves wandering if not literally, then psychically.' . . . Observant and bracingly candid.
Kirkus Reviews
Sally Koslow has written a funny, shrewd, and true account of a problem the boomer generation didn't know it had created: the consequences of helicopter parenting. We've pampered our kids so much they don't want to grow up. Who can blame them?Slouching Toward Adulthoodis the book that explains why 'the guest bedroom' is a thing of the past.
James Atlas, author ofMy Life in the Middle Ages
Koslow casts a keen eye on the 'not-so-empty-nest' phenomenon that besets today's baby boomer parents . . . and provides plenty of food for thought for parents and adultescents who want to understand each other and perhaps change things for the better.
Publishers Weekly
Full of research, insight, and hilarious examples of what life is like for the long-suffering parents of adultescents, Slouching Toward Adulthoodis one of those invaluable books that identifies and illuminates a new phenomenon in our culture.
Gretchen Rubin, author ofThe Happiness Project
Sally Koslow has really hit on something with her incisiveSlouching Toward Adulthood. Memorable books that struck a chord about the path of life or the dissonance between parent and child Gail Sheehy'sPassages, Nancy Friday'sMy Mother/My Self all had a kind of kitchen-table humanity and an ability to limn the unnamed conflicts of a particular moment. Beneath its jaunty two-drinks-with-your-coolest-friend ebullience, this book, as of its moment as those books were of theirs, has that resonance, too.
Sheila Weller, author ofGirls Like Us
The helicopter parent has crashed and burned. With millennials reaching adulthood it has become clear that this hovering style of parenting results in overly dependent young adults, plagued by depression or less satisfaction with their lives and anxiety, who cannot even face the workplace without the handholding their parents have led them to expect. . . . Sally Koslow [has] documented a generation so cosseted that they have lost the impetus to grow up or leave home. The over-involved parent has gone from paragon of caring to a figure of fun.
Lisa Endlich Heffernan, The Atlantic


"

Excellent. At last, a serious, well-researched book about raising children which also includes that crucial characteristic every parent needs a sense of humor.
USA Today, "Top Summer Nonfiction Pick"
Our offspring have simply leveraged our braggadocio, good intentions, and overinvestment, Koslow writes in her new book, Slouching Toward Adulthood. They inhabit a broad savannah of entitlement that we ve watered, landscaped, and hired gardeners to maintain. She recommends letting the grasslands revert to forest: The best way for a lot of us to show our love would be to learn to un-mother and un-father.
Elizabeth Kolbert, The New Yorker
An eye-opener. . . . Koslow writes wittily about the infantilization of American youth as increasing numbers treat getting a job and moving out as just an option.
People
This book is hilarious! I burst out laughing on page one, and it just got funnier and funnier. ButSlouching Toward Adulthoodis also hard-hitting and painfully insightful I found myself wincing with recognition. Backed by the latest research, Sally Koslow's thought-provoking new book should be required reading for today's parents and young adults.
Amy Chua, author ofBattle Hymn of the Tiger Mother
There's a Koslow in all of us who wants to strangle Hannah, the character played by Lena Dunham in the popular HBO showGirls, when we learn that her parents had been subsidizing her life in New York City while she worked at an unpaid internship and pursued a writing career. . . . Koslow criticizes clueless parents as much as their narcissistic offspring. She argues that babying adult children tends to yield entitled progeny who can't launch their way into the conventional phases of adulthood. Koslow offers excellent advice, which makes this book worth reading to the end.
Fortune
Smart, with plenty of insights and a lively prose style that should keep readers, especially the book's target audience of parents, wondering why their grown-up kids are back living in their basements, engaged.
Booklist
A witty, provocative study that examines why so many millennials can't seem to launch into adulthood and now find themselves wandering if not literally, then psychically.' . . . Observant and bracingly candid.
Kirkus Reviews
Sally Koslow has written a funny, shrewd, and true account of a problem the boomer generation didn't know it had created: the consequences of helicopter parenting. We've pampered our kids so much they don't want to grow up. Who can blame them?Slouching Toward Adulthoodis the book that explains why 'the guest bedroom' is a thing of the past.
James Atlas, author ofMy Life in the Middle Ages
Koslow casts a keen eye on the 'not-so-empty-nest' phenomenon that besets today's baby boomer parents . . . and provides plenty of food for thought for parents and adultescents who want to understand each other and perhaps change things for the better.
Publishers Weekly
Full of research, insight, and hilarious examples of what life is like for the long-suffering parents of adultescents, Slouching Toward Adulthoodis one of those invaluable books that identifies and illuminates a new phenomenon in our culture.
Gretchen Rubin, author ofThe Happiness Project
Sally Koslow has really hit on something with her incisiveSlouching Toward Adulthood. Memorable books that struck a chord about the path of life or the dissonance between parent and child Gail Sheehy'sPassages, Nancy Friday'sMy Mother/My Self all had a kind of kitchen-table humanity and an ability to limn the unnamed conflicts of a particular moment. Beneath its jaunty two-drinks-with-your-coolest-friend ebullience, this book, as of its moment as those books were of theirs, has that resonance, too.
Sheila Weller, author ofGirls Like Us
The helicopter parent has crashed and burned. With millennials reaching adulthood it has...

About the Author:

Sally Koslow is a journalist, and an author, and the former editor in chief of both McCall’s and Lifetime. She has written for O, The Oprah Magazine; More; Real Simple; Ladies Home Journal; Good Housekeeping; Reader’s Digest; and Huffington Post. She lives in New York City with her husband; her kids have finally moved out.

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  • PublisherViking Pr
  • Publication date2012
  • ISBN 10 0670023620
  • ISBN 13 9780670023622
  • BindingHardcover
  • Number of pages258
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9780142196823: Slouching Toward Adulthood: How to Let Go So Your Kids Can Grow Up

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