Rife

Let me tell you, there is nothing that, as a 27 year old, makes you feel older than reading a book called Twenty-One Stories from Britain's Youth which then specifies that the nebulous Youth are ages 16-24. I will probably be drawing a pension soon.

But in all seriousness, this book was just great. It's a completely necessary middle finger to all the white, middle-aged male politicians who denigrate the so-called Youth for being unengaged with politics, misinformed and apathetic. This book goes completely against that ridiculous stereotype and shows that young does not mean uncaring.

As always in an anthology book like this, there are some essays which stand out more than others. The final essay in this collection is about how young people can learn from the elderly, and about how ageism affects both ends of the spectrum, and as someone who has taken on a carer role for elderly relatives in the past, this one in particular spoke to me. There are also essays on sexism, fatphobia, racism, the voting age, online harassment, mental health, and the pressures of university, amongst others. Many of these issues do not only affect young people, and it was simultaneously refreshing to see a new perspective on some of them and disheartening to realise that even young people are not protected from bigotry.

The essays on university life in particular were illuminating. As a 27 year old, I was part of the last cohort to pay £3k a year for tuition fees. My year group was the year who voted Nick Clegg into office and then experienced the betrayal of the tuition fee hike, but didn't have to pay up. It made me angry to see what students have to contend with today and the debt they experience because of it.

The voices in this collection are strong and important. The writing is fluent, persuasive and well-informed. I really couldn't find much fault with this collection; I'm sure there'll be the inevitable 'ooh, it's Leftist bias' nonsense from some people at some point, but the fact is that it's a representation of a microcosm of youth voices. It is indicative, not representative, of young people's viewpoints in Britain today, and it's about time that they were listened to. They? We? God, I'm old.

As with all books that are in this format, some chapters are better than others. For the majority of them I found them very well written and offering great insight into the chosen subject. The book features essays from young people on mental health, disability, poverty, racism and sexism among other things. I read it quite quickly and overall I really enjoyed it. It also feels quite unique that its all young voices.

Many thanks to Unbound and Netgalley for an ARC of this collection.

Full disclosure, I was always going to love this as I think that anything Nikesh touches is golden.

This is a glorious collection of essays/stories from young people from across Britain. It touches on almost every topic imaginable and provides wonderful insight in to the trials and tribulations of what it is to be young (16-24) in the UK today. Whilst I am no longer in this bracket (equal parts sadness and joy) I could relate to what each of the writers was talking about and really engaged with the topics and the conversation being had.

For most stories I wished I could pick up the phone and speak with the writer to discuss it more and have an actual conversation about it - this is the sign of a strong collection for me.

In addition, worth mentioning that there is a content warning at the start of each story and this will alert anyone to any potential triggers and this is very handy and I think just a perfect representation of the consciousness of the younger generation today.

Absolutely loved this and cannot wait to get my hands on a hard copy when it is released! 5/5.

Really enjoyed this book despite its revelations on how unprepared our youth of today are to live mainstream lives. This made me question a lot of my own beliefs. Highly recommend.

An interesting collection of different stories written by a variety of young people.
Interesting read and concept.
It’s raw, brutal, honest and unapologetic.
Highly recommended
Thank you to both NetGalley and Unbound publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest unbiased review

I truly enjoyed the content of the writing and the subjects that were discussed, however, some of the writing was really bad. It seems like some of the pieces were not proofread. I would give this 5 stars if not for the writing.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Thank you NetGalley.

True to the fashion of this style of book, some chapters / stories were better than others. That's how it normally goes. Some of these stories were truly great.. others were just meh. all in all, a good read.

In this collection of personal essays, young people reflect on the Britain that we are growing up in. Whether they're talking sexism and casual misogyny, racism, Islamaphobia, homophobia, poor mental health, lack of job opportunities, student debt, an unstable job market, 16 year olds not being able to vote- the topics are intelligent, thoughtful and expertly written. Each writer has their own little twist on the subject, but they all come from a place of personal experience. It adds another dimension to the writing and ensures that we're not hearing from the same voices or same perspectives over and over.

I personally identified with a lot of the work about university life and authors who struggled with their mental health during years that were supposed to be 'the best years of your life'. These are young people ready to talk and demand that they be heard. They are the ones growing into a society that is organized against them. We are angry and in debt and watching a world crumble beneath us because people forty years older than us are making the decisions. There is a running theme of Brexit throughout- it's a running theme of the country, so why wouldn't it be included- but it doesn't become hopeless. If anything, there's an optimism that we can be the generation to change things for the better by acknowledging the key issues now and starting to deal with them.

This is a brilliantly authored snapshot into what it's like to be young in Britain today. I would expect no less from something with Nikesh Shukla's name attached to it.