Nonfiction

The Flag, the Cross, and the Station Wagon: A Graying American Looks Back at His Suburban Boyhood and Wonders What the Hell Happened

The Flag, the Cross, and the Station Wagon: A Graying American Looks Back at His Suburban Boyhood and Wonders What the Hell Happened

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  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2022-06-02 03:19:43
  • Update Date：2025-09-07
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Bill McKibben
  • ISBN：1250823609
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle

Reviews

Ay ，

I pounced on this book from Netgalley because of the author， Bill McKibben。 I have read his work almost daily in the New Yorker for years。 He has always had a rich， insightful take on American culture and politics。 The book， while very good， is not what I expected from the subtitle: “A Graying American Looks Back at His Suburban Boyhood and Wonders What the Hell Happened”。 I interpreted that to mean that McKibben would be musing on his life， and the strange turns it took。 Within the book， he ref I pounced on this book from Netgalley because of the author， Bill McKibben。 I have read his work almost daily in the New Yorker for years。 He has always had a rich， insightful take on American culture and politics。 The book， while very good， is not what I expected from the subtitle: “A Graying American Looks Back at His Suburban Boyhood and Wonders What the Hell Happened”。 I interpreted that to mean that McKibben would be musing on his life， and the strange turns it took。 Within the book， he refers to it as a memoir。 It really is not。 Clearly， from very early in his life， the author has been ever conscious of the big picture， from the town green in the place he grew up， ever wider。 His passionate engagement with his country， its ideals and its history led to his political engagement and activism。 What he explores in this book is how the nascent country developed American ideas of fundamental rights and freedoms in parallel with American ideas of white supremacy and the entrenchment of disadvantage。 He does this through the lens of his growing up， but that lens is visited infrequently， in passing。 If you are looking for a detailed emotive autobiography， this is not it。I have always wondered how Americans manage to exist in the cognitive dissonance of a “free” country which is just the opposite， and McKibben explains how they do so marvellously。 It is also a call to arm for his readers。 Honestly， I highly recommend this book to anyone wondering why the US is like it is。 He marshals facts and data to show his points very effectively and carefully credits his sources。 He also makes suggestions as to where to look further。 All of this in an immensely entertaining readable book。 。。。more

Scott Haraburda ，

An excellent discussion of the patriotic， religious， and economic problems Americans face today。 This book covers brief historical information， along with personal insight。 Will include this in my library。 Well worth the read。

Sean ，

I am a "First Reads" winner。As I reflect on my reading of McKibben's 'The Flag，' two passages from his book stand out to me as two examples of possible answers to his question of 'What the Hell Happened' to the larger idea of Us and our country:"[W]hat's left in the evangelical world is a consumer， transactional relationship。" （p。 125） and"What we may lack is the sense of neighborliness。 For me， the scariest thing about the last forty years， even more than the rising temperature， was the ascensi I am a "First Reads" winner。As I reflect on my reading of McKibben's 'The Flag，' two passages from his book stand out to me as two examples of possible answers to his question of 'What the Hell Happened' to the larger idea of Us and our country:"[W]hat's left in the evangelical world is a consumer， transactional relationship。" （p。 125） and"What we may lack is the sense of neighborliness。 For me， the scariest thing about the last forty years， even more than the rising temperature， was the ascension of the libertarian idea that the individual matters far more than the society and individual inhabits。" （p。 195）While I found McKibben's writing style challenging at times - less "linear，" more "stream of conscious-esque" - the ideas and outcomes he addresses in 'The Flag' ring true for me - especially when he posits examples of how "simple" choices made by Individuals in positions of influence not too far in his/my lifetime， led to results that have had negative consequences for the America in which we live now。（。。。 but McKibben DOES end 'The Flag' with some hope， some suggestions and ways to make Us and America better 。。。 ）A good read！ 。。。more

Eric ，

Inspiring， sobering and important。 I am so privileged to have had a chance to listen to this profound book。 Not everyone will agree with McKibben but his message should be read/heard by the widest possible audience。

Sherman ，

I have to agree。。。。。。the world is heading in the wrong direction！ For older people we all are wondering 'What the hell happened to our world？' Everything has changed so much in the last 50 years， some good some bad， that it makes us want the old world back like it was before。 I worry about our grandchildren and the world they will have to face。 It could all change though and be for the better。 I hope so。 I enjoyed this book and will read some of his previous books。 I have to agree。。。。。。the world is heading in the wrong direction！ For older people we all are wondering 'What the hell happened to our world？' Everything has changed so much in the last 50 years， some good some bad， that it makes us want the old world back like it was before。 I worry about our grandchildren and the world they will have to face。 It could all change though and be for the better。 I hope so。 I enjoyed this book and will read some of his previous books。 。。。more

Michael ，

Bill McKibben is one of my favorite humans on this planet （I think I write that everytime I review one of his books）。 He is a few years older than I am， but grew up not too far from where I did （he was in Lexington， MA， while I was in Somerville， MA）。 In this book， McKibben talks about how the world has changed since his childhood， and how his Baby Boomer generation has made a serious hash of things。 Politics， religion， the environment。。。none of this is trending in a good direction here in the U Bill McKibben is one of my favorite humans on this planet （I think I write that everytime I review one of his books）。 He is a few years older than I am， but grew up not too far from where I did （he was in Lexington， MA， while I was in Somerville， MA）。 In this book， McKibben talks about how the world has changed since his childhood， and how his Baby Boomer generation has made a serious hash of things。 Politics， religion， the environment。。。none of this is trending in a good direction here in the US of A （or around the world， really）。 Is it affluenza？ Is it xenophobia and racism？ Is it a failure of imagination？ Human nature？ I don't know。 Like the author， I too have seen a lot of changes since my childhood， and while change is the only constant in life， technology， society， just about every damn thing is changing at a bewildering pace。 It seems to me that people know more but care less these days。 Maybe I am just getting old。I， too， am a graying American， albeit one on the leading edge of Gen。 X and not the trailing end of the Baby Boom， as Mr。 McKibben is。 With age come perspective， and one of the things that has changed for me is my politics。 I was， for a long time， a Republican （admittedly a mild one）。 That shit is as dead as disco to me now: those people have lost their damn minds。 A good book， well-written and thought-provoking， as Mr。 McKibben always is。 。。。more

J Earl ，

The Flag， the Cross， and the Station Wagon: A Graying American Looks Back at His Suburban Boyhood and Wonders What the Hell Happened， by Bill McKibben， is an interesting and honest look at what many of us of this age thought our country was and what it seems instead to be。 I am of a similar age （two years older） and while my childhood was different from his I can relate to many of the things he ponders in looking back at both his life and the country's recent history。 What we knew （or thought we The Flag， the Cross， and the Station Wagon: A Graying American Looks Back at His Suburban Boyhood and Wonders What the Hell Happened， by Bill McKibben， is an interesting and honest look at what many of us of this age thought our country was and what it seems instead to be。 I am of a similar age （two years older） and while my childhood was different from his I can relate to many of the things he ponders in looking back at both his life and the country's recent history。 What we knew （or thought we knew）， how we understood even the very facts we all shared， and just how we could have allowed things to go so bad。There are a couple of things that set this apart from books that might be similar （by that I mean memoirs that try to look at the bigger picture）。 The first， I think， is that McKibben is brutally honest with and about himself and his/our generation。 This isn't a looking back at the "good old days" and wanting to figure out how to go back。 They weren't so good for way too many citizens and going back would mean oppressing those same groups all over again。 Yet even with acknowledging these things he also tries to find what parts might be worth salvaging and modifying in order to make society better。 Not a return to the details of the past but perhaps finding what from that era can be used along with new knowledge to help the United States finally begin to approach the promises of her founding documents （no， not the founding fathers， the documents）。I think the second important aspect is his call for the baby boomers and those older even than us to stand up and act like the elders we are supposed to be。 We did enjoy a lot of the fruits that have led to our current climate crisis as well as our economic and racial inequalities。 We can't just shrug our shoulders and just leave it to the younger generations to fix。 If we do， it may not be fixable by the time we finally relinquish the reins of government。 This is a call to action as much as it is a memoir。 Answer it！Highly recommended for everyone but especially those of us reaching our graying years。 We are still here and we need to do our part to correct the mistakes we made。Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley。 。。。more