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trashfae 's review for:
Fantasyland: How America Went Haywire: A 500-Year History
by Kurt Andersen
My first audiobook!
Perhaps starting with a heavier nonfiction book was not the way to go. I think I went in expecting more specific in-depth explorations of historical fantasies like the satanic panic. And I did get that - those were the parts of the book I enjoyed the most. But there were parts of the book I couldn't get into as much, including breakdowns of religious sects.
Or maybe I'm just resentful, as someone who suffers from "Kids-R-Us Syndrome," as Andersen puts it. I'm on the verge of turning 30, and I'm struggling to define what it means to be an adult. Can adults not have hobbies like cosplay, or fantasy literature? Must adults be super serious? The idea that adults used to be less "childlike" feels like just another form of the fantastical nostalgia that Andersen talks about throughout the book, pining for the bygone days when things were better.
Moreover, the majority of the conspiracy believers are from groups of people who want to go back to the bygone days where adulthood was a staunch institution, so that seems a tenuous connection at best. To me, that's where parts of Andersen's argument fail. Indulging in fantasy with the knowledge that it is unreal, and living in it full time have certainly become intertwined, but I'm hesitant to blame it on some sense of perpetual childhood. Aside from that, he makes many important points and marks eras that have led us to where we are. In general, a good read with a lot of great information.
Perhaps starting with a heavier nonfiction book was not the way to go. I think I went in expecting more specific in-depth explorations of historical fantasies like the satanic panic. And I did get that - those were the parts of the book I enjoyed the most. But there were parts of the book I couldn't get into as much, including breakdowns of religious sects.
Or maybe I'm just resentful, as someone who suffers from "Kids-R-Us Syndrome," as Andersen puts it. I'm on the verge of turning 30, and I'm struggling to define what it means to be an adult. Can adults not have hobbies like cosplay, or fantasy literature? Must adults be super serious? The idea that adults used to be less "childlike" feels like just another form of the fantastical nostalgia that Andersen talks about throughout the book, pining for the bygone days when things were better.
Moreover, the majority of the conspiracy believers are from groups of people who want to go back to the bygone days where adulthood was a staunch institution, so that seems a tenuous connection at best. To me, that's where parts of Andersen's argument fail. Indulging in fantasy with the knowledge that it is unreal, and living in it full time have certainly become intertwined, but I'm hesitant to blame it on some sense of perpetual childhood. Aside from that, he makes many important points and marks eras that have led us to where we are. In general, a good read with a lot of great information.