“...TV was entertainment of the last resort. There was nothing on during the day in the summer other than game shows and soap operas. Besides, a TV-watching child was considered available for chores: take out the trash, clean your room, pick up that mess, fold those towels, mow the lawn... the list was endless. We all became adept at chore-avoidance. Staying out of sight was a reliable strategy. Drawing or painting was another: to my mother, making art trumped making beds. A third choir-avoidance technique was to read. A kid with his or her nose in a book is a kid who is not fighting, yelling, throwing, breaking things, bleeding, whining, or otherwise creating a Mom-size headache. Reading a book was almost like being invisible - a good thing for all concerned.” Growing UpSummerNostalgia1960sChores1960s Nostalgia Book:Libraries of Minnesota Source: Libraries of Minnesota
“Them that’s gots, gets.” My uncle replied.” LossInsightfulWarmthSimpler Times1960s NostalgiaFamily ConflictsTrust And BetrayalSuburban NostalgiaNostalgia FictionYouthful Perspective Book:Just Out Of Reach Source: Just Out Of Reach
“45,000 sections of reinforced concrete—three tons each. Nearly 300 watchtowers. Over 250 dog runs. Twenty bunkers. Sixty five miles of anti-vehicle trenches—signal wire, barbed wire, beds of nails. Over 11,000 armed guards. A death strip of sand, well-raked to reveal footprints. 200 ordinary people shot dead following attempts to escape the communist regime. 96 miles of concrete wall. Not your typical holiday destination. JF Kennedy said the Berlin Wall was a better option than a war. In TDTL, the Anglo-German Bishop family from the pebbledashed English suburb of Oaking argue about this—among other—notions while driving to Cold War Berlin, through all the border checks, with a plan to visit both sides of it.” Cold WarFamily RelationshipsFamily DramaRoad TripComing Of Age NovelEast GermanyDepression Humor1960s Nostalgia Book:Tying Down the Lion Source: Tying Down the Lion