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America, the Eighties, and the Creation of an Unequal Nation
by Tom McGrath
The "entertaining and insightful" first history of the Yuppie phenomenon, chronicling the roots, rise, triumph and (seeming) fall of the young urban professionals who radically altered American life between 1980 and 1987 (New York Times bestselling author Ben Mezrich).
By the time their obituary was being written in the late 1980s, Yuppies—the elite, uber‑educated faction of the Baby Boom generation—had become a cultural punchline. But amidst the Yuppies' preoccupation with money, work, and the latest status symbols, something serious was happening, too, something that continues to have profound ramifications on American culture four decades later.
Brimming with lively and nostalgic details (think Jane Fonda, The Sharper Image, and over-the-top fashion), Triumph of the Yuppies charts Boomers' transformation from hippy idealists in the late 1960s to careerists in the early 1980s, and details how marketers, the media, and politicians pivoted to appeal to this influential new group. Yuppie values had an undeniable impact on the worlds of fashion, food, and fitness, as well as affecting the broader culture—from gentrification and an obsession with career success to an indulgent materialism. Most significantly, the me‑first mindset typical of Yuppieness helped create the largest income inequality in a century.
Tom McGrath's masterful cultural history reveals how Yuppies reshaped American society. It is a portrait of America just as it was beginning to come apart—and the origin story of the fractured country we live in today.
"Insightful and immensely entertaining." ―Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"A beguiling look at an era that inaugurated an ever-widening rift between a self-satisfied elite and a resentful working class." ―Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"A wonderful read! Equal parts entertaining and insightful, McGrath charts the rise and fall of the Yuppies with a cast of larger-than-life characters. You'll come for the nostalgic trip through the eighties—and stay for the sharp social commentary that underscores how Yuppies created the world we live in today." ―New York Times bestselling author Ben Mezrich
"In Triumph of the Yuppies, Tom McGrath brings us right down memory lane in a highly readable, highly enjoyable way. For readers born into the Yuppie generation, or who are just curious what it was all about and why it matters, this is the book for you!" ―New York Times bestselling author William Cohan
"If you want to understand why the economic disparity, polarized politics, and rampant excesses of the Reagan eighties still haunt these Divided States of America, Triumph of the Yuppies is a Rosetta Stone. Make room on your bookshelf for Tom McGrath's ideal companion volume to Tom Wolfe's Bonfire of the Vanities, Steve Gillon's Boomer Nation, David Brooks' Bobos in Paradise, and Susan Faludi's Backlash." ―David Friend, author of The Naughty Nineties
"If Sharper Image stores were still around, they could offer their coolest gadget ever: a time machine that looks like a book. Tom McGrath smoothly transports us back to the neon-lit moment of sushi, suspenders, and junk bonds that fascinatingly illuminates the darker economy we live with today." ―Benjamin Wallace, author of the New York Times bestseller The Billionaire's Vinegar
This information about Triumph of the Yuppies was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Tom McGrath was the editor-in-chief of Philadelphia magazine, as well as chief content officer of Metro Corp., the parent company of Philadelphia and Boston between 2010 and 2020. Under his leadership, the magazines won more than fifty awards for editorial excellence. In 2022, he was named Writer of the Year at the National City and Regional Magazine Awards. He's written two previous books: MTV: The Making of a Revolution, and, with John Basedow, Fitness Made Simple.
My Darling Boy by John Dufresne
The story of of a man whose son collapses into addiction and vanishes into the chaotic netherworld of southern Florida.
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