What do you think?
Rate this book
Wasted: How Misunderstanding Young Britain Threatens Our Future
A manifesto for the future of Britain from a brilliant young voice in politics.
Young people growing up in Britain today face a narrowing job market, high housing costs and the prospect of a lifetime of hard work with less reward. The ideas of social responsibility that arose after the Second World War are straining under the demands of a globalised world.
Too often public debate divides Britain's youth into the 'feral rats' of the London riots and the 'posh boys' of Eton. Business leaders rail at the entitled and unemployable young people they are asked to give jobs to, politicians complain about apathetic teens and commentators devote endless column inches to the issue of a 'self-obsessed' generation.
Georgia Gould's Wasted shows us that far from being the apathetic, materialistic, drunken problem they are often portrayed as, young people in Britain have the aspirations, the creativity and the will to answer the many challenges we face. Georgia travelled across the UK to uncover the values, aspirations and challenges of young Brits, from job seekers in Bradford and working-class families in Glasgow's Easterhouse estate, to student protesters at Sussex University and young entrepreneurs in London such as YouTube sensation Jamal Edwards.
Gould makes a case for a stronger dialogue between generations. If we show young people that we trust them with the future of our country, we will find that they are ready to rise to the challenge. This timely work points the way towards a new social contract and gives a voice to young Britain.
Young people growing up in Britain today face a narrowing job market, high housing costs and the prospect of a lifetime of hard work with less reward. The ideas of social responsibility that arose after the Second World War are straining under the demands of a globalised world.
Too often public debate divides Britain's youth into the 'feral rats' of the London riots and the 'posh boys' of Eton. Business leaders rail at the entitled and unemployable young people they are asked to give jobs to, politicians complain about apathetic teens and commentators devote endless column inches to the issue of a 'self-obsessed' generation.
Georgia Gould's Wasted shows us that far from being the apathetic, materialistic, drunken problem they are often portrayed as, young people in Britain have the aspirations, the creativity and the will to answer the many challenges we face. Georgia travelled across the UK to uncover the values, aspirations and challenges of young Brits, from job seekers in Bradford and working-class families in Glasgow's Easterhouse estate, to student protesters at Sussex University and young entrepreneurs in London such as YouTube sensation Jamal Edwards.
Gould makes a case for a stronger dialogue between generations. If we show young people that we trust them with the future of our country, we will find that they are ready to rise to the challenge. This timely work points the way towards a new social contract and gives a voice to young Britain.
416 pages, Paperback
First published March 5, 2015
4 people are currently reading
27 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
October 5, 2020
A very good account of young people's experiences throughout the various different backgrounds of UK with fact and statistics. Georgia gave a fair attempt at addressing the generation divide with suggestions
July 26, 2016
Excellent - thought that chapter, Project Me, was probably the most accurate illustration of Generation Y that I've read to date. Inspiring, and a definite call to arms for young people in Britain.
That said, could have done with an editor in the final section.
That said, could have done with an editor in the final section.
June 17, 2023
Peters out in the second half but the case studies and fieldwork are exemplary. Ten years on, and with Britain out of Europe, it's hard to see that anything has changed but we'll have to wait a few decades to see if the 20somethings of the book grow up to become the adults who effect change.
March 1, 2016
To be honest I couldn't read this, it was too boring. I should know better than to pick up a book by a politician rather than a journalist.
It's all referenced, which I like, and I'm sure it's very worthy, but I'd have to be forced to read it.
It's all referenced, which I like, and I'm sure it's very worthy, but I'd have to be forced to read it.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews