The Nineties

A Book

By: Chuck Klosterman

Narrated by: Chuck Klosterman, Dion Graham

Length: 12 hrs and 39 mins

Publisher's summary

An instant New York Times bestseller!

“Informative, endlessly entertaining.”—BuzzFeed

“Generation X’s definitive chronicler of culture.”—GQ

From the author of But What If We’re Wrong comes an insightful, funny reckoning with a pivotal decade

It was long ago, but not as long as it seems: The Berlin Wall fell and the Twin Towers collapsed. In between, one presidential election was allegedly decided by Ross Perot while another was plausibly decided by Ralph Nader. Landlines fell to cell phones, the internet exploded, and pop culture accelerated without the aid of technology that remembered everything. It was the last era with a real mainstream to either identify with or oppose. The ’90s brought about a revolution in the human condition, and a shift in consciousness, that we’re still struggling to understand. Happily, Chuck Klosterman is more than up to the job.

In The Nineties, Klosterman dissects the film, the music, the sports, the TV, the pre-9/11 politics, the changes regarding race and class and sexuality, the yin/yang of Oprah and Alan Greenspan, and (almost) everything else. The result is a multidimensional masterpiece, a work of synthesis so smart and delightful that future historians might well refer to this entire period as Klostermanian.

©2022 Chuck Klosterman (P)2022 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

“In The Nineties, Klosterman examines the social, political and cultural history of the era with his signature wit. It’s a fascinating trip down memory lane.” —Time

“Always an astute cultural observer and a fan of deep dives into any subject, Klosterman is focused here on a decade in American life that he says is often portrayed as ‘a low-risk grunge cartoon’ . . . Klosterman’s gift is seizing on those moments that any Gen Xer can readily recall and pulling the strings a bit to put it in some kind of historical perspective.” —Associated Press

“Serving up the moments and meanings of a modern decade in a few hundred pages is no easy task, but Chuck Klosterman has managed to boil a hearty stew of insight. . . . [Klosterman is] a master of smooth setups and downbeat finishes.” —USA Today

Great fun overall

Felt like I'm experiencing my childhood once again but with a grown up perspective

not what I expected but enjoyable

I knew of Chuck Klosterman from his short essays like sex drugs and Cocoa Puffs. when I started the book it wasn't what I expected and I initially didn't think I would like it. by the end though I really enjoyed it and I think he did a good job of connecting Trends in the 90s to things that are still going on today. I was afraid it was going to be overly heavy on the Nostalgia which I'm not a big fan of but instead I think it was a critical analysis of a decade and the implications for the future

Easy read and good nostalgia

Enjoyed the book. Took awhile to get used to the narrator but the content is great.

Masterpiece

Can’t say enough good things about this book. A beautiful examination of the importance of the nineties.

Work of art

This book isn’t just a retelling of the past, it takes you back to the time and mindset of the 90’s.

Chuck is So Good

Everything he touches is fantastic. I really enjoyed this one, even moreso than the books that made him famous

Fun listen

Good vacation read. Would recommend
Even if you find one part boring, you can just skip to the next one.

This book is awesome!

I listened to it in a day. I was born in ‘87 and loved everything explored in this book. Klosterman consistently reminds me what it was like to live during that time, and how different things are now. It’s akin to the movie “Mid 90’s”, and has a similar nostalgia to it, but rounds out a more macroscopic view of the nineties, worts and all. It’s an amazing book for anyone who lived some formative years during that time, or anyone who wants a glimpse into life just before the age of social media.

Nevermind to 9/11

Klosterman does it again: a deft, incisive swirl of amnesiac nostalgia weaving pop culture flashpoints with dead-on insights on the decade that served as the prelude for the fever dream we now find ourselves in.

Not bad. Missing something

a pretty good book, but it was missing something for me. I like the author as I've read some of his other books. The first chapter was tough to get through. Good history or the 90s. I think part of my issue was, I would be getting I to a topic and then he would move on to something new and I wanted him to go deeper. Pretty good iverall