X vs. Y: A Culture War, a Love Story

by Eve Epstein, Leonora Epstein

Seen through the eyes of siblings 14 years apart in age, X vs. Y is a smart, funny, stylish, and visually driven anthology that com­piles and compares their two generational cul­tures. It’s a story told through lists, infographics, essays, anecdotes, and images, with chapters devoted to fashion, TV, music, technology, dating, books, and movies. Through musings on topics such as leg warmers, Clueless , Sassy magazine, and MTV, along with mixtapes and TV characters, X vs. Y paints a portrait of two intricately entwined generations.

Genres: Nonfiction, Pop Culture, Humor, Adult, Cultural, Memoir, Social Science

191 pages, Paperback

First published March 18, 2014

Reviews

[Christine Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

good book. good read. I enjoyed the perspectives and reminiscing a bit. I felt there was one big miss in the book. I couldn't relate to either generation. The gen xer was a real gen xer obviously growing up in the 80s and the gen yer is obviously a youngin. I found myself somewhere in between being a 30 something who was a teen in the 90s. I mean how do you not talk about 90210, Melrose place, new kids on the block, and so many things that brought peace to 1991? I felt that maybe there should be a gen x.2. none the less it kept me interested and is a fast entertaining light read that can definitely start a few conversations.

[Amy Talkington · Rating 5 out of 5]

X vs Y. Basically it’s Nirvana vs. Britney, Family Ties vs. Dawson’s, Heathers vs. Mean Girls. Doc Martens vs. foam footwear. But it's so much more than that. The book is just awesome in every way. It’s all told from the sisters' perspectives via essays, letters, lists, charts, diagrams, IM chats, dating profiles… you name it! The layout is slick and cool. They are fantastic, sharp writers. Eve used to be the editor in chief of Daily Candy and Leo is a staff writer at Buzzfeed (where she has penned at least a dozen lists and quizzes that you have undoubtedly done!). But what really makes this read stand out is the heart and emotion they manage to squeeze into their essays that seem, on the surface, to be only about pop culture. Read this and then buy another one to give as the most awesome b-day gift to your BFF (of any generation)!

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this up thinking "oh, a book about me and about my cool slightly older coworkers!" Two sisters wax nostalgic about their youths and the different cultural touchstones of the X and Y generations. Broken into topics (Music, Movies, Technology etc) the book gives an overview of the different generations. I don't think anything in this book was ground breaking, but it was a gentle read and I enjoyed the perspectives offered. The sisters did not debate which generation was better, as hinted by the sub-title.

I didn't do the mental math to figure out exactly how old the authors are, but the Gen Y author (aka: the millennial) is older than I am. She was a solid teen, in high school during 9/11, while I was sitting through fourth grade. This did make for significant differences in our experiences as millennials. She was also, simply, not a nerd. She mentions Harry Potter a few times, references the LOTR films in one line, and has a few throw-away comments about Buffy. Her experiences of being a millennial center on Dawson's Creek and Leo DiCaprio. Basically, I didn't identify with her youth at all. Under Technology there isn't even a hint of game consoles/ Tamagotchi's? game boys!? really! nothing? It's not you, it's me.

But the Gen X-er spoke my language. She saw E.T. in theaters, espouses the virtues of Star Wars, claims Charlotte's Web for Gen X and wrote about zines and music like important individual experiences. yes! Her essay on Twin Peaks has convinced me I need to watch it and that it will change my life.

Overall I think my favorite part of the whole thing is the last page, a commentary on the coming generation, who are now known as Zoomers. Reading this knowing the book was published nearly 10 years ago makes their final words somewhat ominous. The Epstein sisters couldn't have predicted Tik Tok, or data caps, or the discontinuation of the iPod. Artists removing their music from Spotify and Netflix removing shows/altering the soundtracks etc.

"The reason we have all that nostalgia is that we lost those things for a while. There was no Internet to constantly catalog and reference yesterday’s episode of Mister Rogers or meme-ify The Little Mermaid. So when those things came back via digital media, we got the chance to rediscover them. Gen Z won’t have to rediscover anything; they live in a world where nothing ever goes away. And they’re often as conversant in the popular culture of years past as we are because they have access to all of it. Everything exists in the present, all the time, all at once.
Because Gen Zers have unprecedented access to information and media from both the past and present, they’ll face a different sort of challenge: figuring out how to locate value in the sea of media and entertainments they’ve grown up in. Eve has nostalgia for Sesame Street because it was one of three TV shows she ever watched as a child; would she have felt the same way if her options had been effectively limitless?
We wonder if because of all of this, the next generation will challenge the idea of what a generation actually is. They may find different ways to find one another, identify themselves, and communicate about who they are and what they care about. But one thing they can definitely count on: Older folks (that’d be us) will accuse them of apathy, self-involvement, entitlement, and naïveté. Some things never change."

[Janet | purrfectpages · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book offers up viewpoints on everything pop culture from sisters born 14 years apart, placing them in two different generations, thus the title X vs. Y. As someone who identifies with both generations, I am indeed its target audience. This was further evidenced by how I could relate to both authors. In fact recently, a new micro generation coined Xennials came out that perhaps suits me even better, but I digress. Anyway, I love analyzing pop culture nostalgia, so I expected to love this. I guess it just didn’t get nerdy enough for someone like me. The references instead more or less just scratched the surface. It was an ok romp down memory lane with soundbites of goodness, but overall nothing too spectacular.

[Knotty · Rating 3 out of 5]

I bought this book on a whim one day at a book store because the cover looked pretty awesome. Plus, what better way to sludge through your breast-pumping work breaks than reading about nostalgia? “X vs. Y” is a story written by two sisters born in two different generations. I definitely wanted to read it since I too live in the same sort of world. My kid brother was born in 1993 and I was born in 1982. Technically, we are both Generation Y/Millennials, but since I was born on Day 2 of the beginning of the generation, I really think I am a hybrid of both generations since I’m right there smack in the middle. How do our lives pan out based on the generation we are born into? It has always fascinated me. I feel like my brother’s generation is really different from mine just based on the technologies they have always had, which in my time was a total luxury. I remember getting our first computer (a Mac) and AOL (which I believe was New Year’s Eve 1994… what a way to start 1995?) I can remember where I was when Princess Diana died, where my brother has no idea who Princess Diana was. (Are you kidding me? Hasn’t he seen the zillion magazines with her face on the cover in the supermarket check out line?!) I’m pretty sure I have had the same screen name my entire online life while my brother has probably changed his a million times. The other day, he came over to my house for the Game of Thrones finale, and I asked him if he knew about Pinterest since I re-created the Outback’s version of cheese fries using a recipe from the website. His response? “Jen, that has been out over two years. It’s useless now.” Seriously? Burnnnnnnnnnnn. These young whipper snappers nowadays ain’t got no time for that.

Some of this book did go over my head since I grew up in Indiana and not the hustle and bustle of New York City. I don’t like a lot of popular music, and the kind I like is generally scoffed at for being terrible. Even now, the authors both live in Los Angeles and are probably doing way cooler things than I will ever do. I definitely got a Buzzfeed vibe from the book, and apparently the younger sister is a writer for the website.

My favorite part of the book was about Cher Horowitz and Clueless, which is still one of my top favorite movies. That movie had EVERYTHING, and it was my first double date matinée! (Shout out to two of the Adams triplets and Meg Williams Jack!) I’m pretty sure I say “Your man Christian is a cake boy!” at least once a month. (and I had no idea that “jeepin’” meant sex in a jeep… guess everyone went Jeepin’ in the 90′s.)

Fun facts: did you ever read a ‘zine? I did- absolutely! After my name and address got published in X-men #33, I got a ton of weird mail, and a few ‘zines were included. Also, how many things did you order from *delia’s? True story, I only had 1 shirt (and damn I loved that blue tank top even though it didn’t go with my look AT ALL).

Overall, a fun and entertaining look back into the past. I would think only girls would like this book since there isn’t anything boyish in here other than Star Wars which is pretty much universal.

Sometimes you need a fun little book.

Jen’s Rating: ***

[Chaitra · Rating 2 out of 5]

For a while there, I thought I’d be interested in what this book had to say, because I identify with both Gen X and Y, even though technically I’m Gen Y. But I don’t know - this talk of generations is firmly America/Western world centric, and I was born and raised in India. Mine was the first generation to become influenced by global trends to the extent it did. Even so, my India was still so different from what these sisters lived through, so when they say that this or that book or tv series encapsulated their generation, I think yeah, I enjoyed it, but it wasn’t my everyday reality.

That’s the core of my boredom with generations. I’ve felt the generational gap, but it’s not one that is usually talked about. Also, I really, really don’t care that some people don’t understand what you’re on about. Just do your thing. It’s got to be easy to find your niche in this age.

(Also, which philistine hasn’t been to a library? My son’s kinder class has a weekly library class where the kids read a book on a smart board, yes, but they check out an actual physical book they return the next week. Don’t exaggerate).

[Vivienne · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fine book, mostly a nostalgia trip, occasional insights into the nature of generational conflict, but the reason why I’m most excited about having finished it is that I’ve finally completed an X book for my alphabet challenge!!!

[Angie Fehl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Using a series of essays and a humorous collection of infographs, IM / text messages and other illustrations, sisters -- born 14 years apart -- Eve (Gen X) and Leonora Epstein (Gen Y) take on the differences and similarities between Generations X and Y. They discuss what bridges the gap between the two as well as why there will never be total understanding between them. The book is divided into sections, covering every topic you can imagine -- movies, music, books, sex & dating, it's all here.

This book was right up my alley because it covers a number of conversation topics I find myself pondering on in my own life. I strongly identify with being in that gray area of people born in the early 1980s the Epsteins discuss! While technically my birth year places me as a millennial, I have a Gen X older brother whose interests had a pretty big influence on my own, growing up. So there's a lot that I identify with from both generational periods. Which is probably why I found this essay collection so fascinating, finding out that I was far from being the only one who felt this way! Even reading the thoughts and opinions of both Epstein sisters, I still found myself unable to side with either, feeling very much right down the middle on a lot of things. I would be feeling what one sister was saying but then she goes on about how stupid a song "Tubthumpin" by Chumbawumba is... c'mon now, how can you not love to party to that one? =-D Oh, and then there was the time that Gen Y sister knocked Bono of U2, one of my all-time favorite bands. Fightin' words, girl. Fightin' words. But then I was Team Y again when she started waxing poetic about the days of the dELiA*s catalog. ;-)

There were portions where I felt a bit of a disconnect with what both sisters were saying, I think simply because I had a different upbringing. These ladies had a bit of a privileged childhood which included stores I never had access to and Manhattan private school educations. So there were moments where they'd be like "everyone had these things" "everyone experienced this" and I would be left thinking, well no, not everyone. That aside, some of my favorite portions were the bits regarding online dating experiences, "the inexplicable nostalgia for JTT", and the debates on influential / classic movies of each generation. Also loved Gen X sister Eve comparing E.B. White's Charlotte's Web to the films of Spike Jonze and Wes Anderson. X-D

[Chelsey Cosh · Rating 4 out of 5]

X vs. Y is a quick read, a comparative look at pop culture through the eyes of sisters with a fourteen-year age gap. Generation X is Eve Epstein who waxes on about Wham, bulky acrylic legwarmers, Saturday-morning cartoons, and auteur David Lynch and his Twin Peaks in her personal essays, while her sister Leonora Epstein, who represents Generation Y, was more my speed, rattling on about the profundity of Aqua, Tom Green, dating via text message and IM, and, one of my favourites, the book The Perks of Being A Wallflower. I especially appreciated the line of similarity she cuts through Rugrats, Buffy, and New Girl. It certainly captures the attention, even if only for a fleeting 190 pages. I'd recommend it.

[Richelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

The concept is interesting, the design of the book is fantastic. The content---no deeper than a blog post without the embedded links.

[Jim · Rating 1 out of 5]

I thought this was a really cool idea. But it got a little tiresome as I got into it. Then one of the sisters said someone looked like a "tranny" and I was done...

[Alaina · Rating 2 out of 5]

EH.
If you want to write a pop culture memoir, write one. Don't try to sum up two huge generations with just one perspective each.

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

I realised I hadn't finished this when I started it years ago, I liked it, but then I like anything with Gen X in the title.

[Danielle Lehman · Rating 5 out of 5]

You will laugh your asses off. And feel warm and fuzzy and nostalgic inside.

[Carla · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a perfect beach read!

[Soyorin · Rating 3 out of 5]

The covers looked awesome, but as some comments warned, I should have known better—this book is starkly American (or Western)-centric; the cultural divides defining Gen X and Gen Y here couldn’t be more different than in my country, where we don’t even have those generational labels. Since I’m neither a Gen X-er nor a Gen Y-er and haven’t watched any of the shows mentioned, only the technology-related parts were accessible to me; the rest, while I could grasp the cultural context, didn’t resonate personally. It feels like flipping through a nostalgic small-talk session (which is exactly what it is) where people reminisce about their generation and nothing more.
That said, I still adore the book’s covers and interior designs—they’re stunning. Some dating-related parts were hilarious:"Can you date this guy who bills himself as an artist, thinker, time traveler, jack-of-all-trades?" You know he’s an iconoclast—ego-driven and utterly self-absorbed lmao. This book is perfect for your average American reader who wants to laugh over relatable anecdotes on a sunny day without overthinking, just soaking in the nostalgia, I suppose.

[Kirsten · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was so much more fun to read than I thought it would be. Not that I expected it to be dull, by any means, but this had so much more personality and vivaciousness than I expected.

(I also, for some reason, thought this was written by a brother/sister duo so you can imagine my surprise when I discovered it was 2 sisters.)

I've gotta be honest with y'all, though, and admit that I'm not really sure what the point of the book was. Yeah, it was fun to get 2 sisters' perspectives on similar things and to see a few differences, but I had anticipated more of a debate over which generation was better or something, and that was missing. It didn't make the interesting and fun bits any less fun or interesting, but just made this reading experience more like floating than diving in, if that makes sense.

A quick, fun look at culture and how it helps shapes everyone whether you want it to or not, this was fun to devour on a sunny weekend.

[Suzanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Why did I pick up this book: Honestly, I needed a book that started with X for a reading challenge and I didn't want to read about Xylophones or X-ray machines.

Are you glad you did: Absolutely! If you are a Gen X or Gen Y, you'll feel nostalgic. I was on the borderline for both of these. I graduated in 1998 so I wasn't 100% either one. For example I poured over Delia's catalogues but never liked Spice Girls.

I actually had this outfit, until I grew boobs!


One word of caution: They do use the word "tranny" and for a book published in 2014, I was very disappointed. They should've known better than to use that word, in my opinion.

[Missy Mack · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed this book as it was an easy yet entertaining read. I loved how they took simple pop culture topics from my adolescence and discussed them in a humorous, more in depth way (similar to Chuck Klosterman).

As someone born in the "gray area" between gen x and y (1979-1984), I could relate to a lot of what both authors were talking about. Even laughed out loud a few times. For example, when Eve wrote "high school boys weren't exactly banging down my hymen".

Also loved reminiscing about one of my biggest teen crushes when Leonora mentioned Skeet Ulrich. If you also had a crush on Skeet Ulrich, I think you'll like this book.

[Jehnie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun. Goofy. It made me laugh from time to time. There were a lot of very familiar cultural references. It was a bit too navel-gaze-y (although that was the book's purpose, so I should have expected it).

[Blaise Kyrios · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this so much. If you are gen x or gen y, you should try it.

[shannon · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun cultural examination

[Kayla Hillier · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really dig this one in a very indulgent way.
I enjoyed reminiscin' as much as the authors do.

[Colleen · Rating 2 out of 5]

66/191

[Erin · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is about something completely different then what I thought it would be about but at least I learned something about culture

[Elizabeth Zimmerman · Rating 2 out of 5]

Here are some movies we've heard of! And a couple of bands!

[Adrianna · Rating 3 out of 5]

As an X-ennial , this is a pop culture This or That. It would be a great blog or podcast but not sure it works as a book. So much of it is subjective though

[Cait B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ah the memories. Some I associate with my older sisters but all good!

[Bridget · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have to be honest here: I was definitely attracted by this cover. Not only the rainbow Venn diagrams on the front, but the X vs. Y title. I was in the clearance section of Urban Outfitters (a store I am never in... the irony of a mainstream store selling "hipster" stuff kills me) because that store is damned expensive, and my friends were pushing to leave the store soon so that we could catch all of the World Cup Final, so I grabbed the book and headed to the checkout line. $5! What what!

I will admit that I thought this book was about men vs. women- a collection of essays about gender politics written by men and women, with their views, opinions, facts and stances. No, this book is about generational differences. Don't get me wrong, I find generational differences interesting, but I find gender differences more interesting.

That being said, this book would have been more enjoyable as an online set of essays, released once or twice a week on a blog or site that I checked regularly. Attempting to finish this book in several sittings is a little daunting. The task is lightened by the artsy diagrams, unnecessary yet cute charts, and lists with cute images, or illustrated text conversations between the two sisters who wrote (co-wrote?) this book.

I find myself in an interesting situation; I have 4 older brothers born between the early 80s and the early 90s. As someone living in the house with teenage boys, I find I absorbed many things that are technically deemed "Generation X", such as Muppets, Star Wars, Back to the Future, Collective Soul, Red Hot Chili Peppers, flannel shirts and baggy jeans, jean shorts, Vans. Oh man, the pictures of basketball players in the 80s are hilarious. I find a sort of connection to many 80s movies and songs, but I got the male end, and the writers of this book are female. I never saw cut-off sweatshirts, Liz Phair records, an abundance of hairspray, leg warmers, or puffy paint. I did hear a lot of Classic Rock, though.

However, I did have female friends my age, so I was exposed to some of the cultural touchstones of the 90s: floral hats, roll-on body glitter, platform sandals, those long tie sweaters, faux fur collars, butterfly clips, jelly roll sandals, Clueless, the Spice Girls, a little bit of AIM, N*Sync and the Backstreet Boys. Although I saw some of these things, I grew up in a pretty sheltered house. My first venture into music was a Backstreet Boys CD given to me by a friend because she had two copies, the Shrek soundtrack, and Radio Disney by 7th grade. That was all I had. It wasn't until 8th grade and later that I really started to get involved in my generational culture. I really wanted some knit ponchos and those short-heeled pleather black boots, and I felt so cool to actually get some. Then they were out of style within the year. Even then, though, I was never in a popular group and I never really became a slave to the current movies, TV, fashion, technology, etc. I never had a Myspace, I had a very temporary AIM account, I only went to one concert in high school, and cable TV was a non-concept (noncept?) to me. Forget Dawson's Creek, TRL, the Real World, Saved By the Bell, Boy Meets World, the Lizzie McGuire Show. I had after-school public television to get me by (The Bernie Mac Show, Girlfriends Fresh Prince, so on)

The point is, this book was semi-relatable for me. I am in an odd limbo that encompasses 70s music, 80s movies, 90s fashion, 00s technology. Although I enjoyed reading about the views and cultural widespread thought from both generations, it wasn't enough to keep my hypnotized. I literally put this book down for over a week (so I could read something more engaging) and counted the pages until I was done. It could be that extremely mainstream pop culture has never been front on my list of important things, or that I am comprised of a cocktail of different generations and forms of entertainment/culture. This is why I would have preferred this as a bi-weekly essay release. I can't stand the idea of a book being unfinished for longer than a few days.

However, this book is great for reliving your child, refreshing your nostalgia, and spending hours on Buzzfeed looking at '90s lists. Oh man, Lisa Frank was on ALL my folders...

[Sharon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eve and Leonora Epstein are sisters, born 14 years apart. This is a book written by both of them, in celebration of both Eve's Generation X (Born mid 60s to late 70s) and Leonora's Generation y (Born early 80s to late 90s). I always thought I was firmly in Camp X but I realise that Y goes much further back than I thought - I would actually consider the Mean Girls/Millennium era another Generation entirely. I fall into that awkward "gray area" of 1979-1984, so I'm kinda crossover. I could identify with a lot of what both girls talked about.

The book covers music, fashion, technology, sex & dating, books, movies and TV shows. It's a colourful, fun book with both generations co-existing respectfully - there's no sense of competition or of trying to one-up each other while reading this, which is nice. It makes a change from going to Youtube to watch an INXS video and seeing comments like "OMG u guys r so dummmb... wat even is The Breakfast Club?! Like if ur here bcuz of Pitch Perfect! Skylar is PERF, OMG". Etcetera. Leonora put it best when she wrote: "Generation Y couldn't exist without Generation X because we've (selectively) made their nostalgia our nostalgia."

It's a bit more USA oriented than what I remember my childhood to be, which is natural, given that the girls ARE American. What struck a chord with me (apart from realising that I still know all the words to "This is How We Party" by S.O.A.P) was the Generation X term "fauxstalgia" - I think we've all been guilty of that at one point or another. I mean I was convinced for years that I could remember watching Live Aid, and said as much to many, many people. Quite the skill, considering I was still in nappies when it aired........

This would be 5 stars if it were longer - I think it could have covered Toys, Food, Social Life,School Experience a bit more. Otherwise it was perfect, a really enjoyable look at both generations.