End of the Good Life: How the Financial Crisis Threatens a Lost Generation—and What We Can Do About It

Rich with narrative detail from young people around the world struggling to stay afloat, this first book by Brussels-based economic reporter Froymovich focuses on the toll of the recession on Generation Y (those born between 1976 and 2000), the often overlooked new entrants to the job market, who are saddled with the results of economic policies they didn’t create. Froymovich examines a number of familiar culprits for the financial crisis, including austerity measures in the E.U., and, closer to home, demands for increased education, a dearth of jobs, and cumbersome tuition and loan policies. In addition, Froymovich lucidly explains how Generation Y suffers from the negative effects of long-term unemployment, an increased reliance by employers on temporary or contract work, and a tax system rewarding home ownership and parenting. While two-thirds of the book details the crisis, Froymovich offers mostly left-of-the-aisle solutions, which include changes in education savings and student loan policies, an overhaul of the accreditation procedure which would make affordable education more accessible, increased investment in public service jobs, and progressive changes in tax policy. The author calls on Generation Y to attack the problems of their own future with creative entrepreneurship and increased political involvement, because, as she makes clear, no one else is looking out for them. Agent: Rachel Sussman, Chalberg & Sussman. (May)