This book was 100% my jam - pop culture and nostalgia, what more is there to love? I really enjoyed this book, and I am the perfect age to do so. All of the things mentioned in this book are things that were more or less integral to my childhood. This book was more than a look back at the "brands that raised us" - it was also a poignant memoir about the author's youth and growing up to be who he is today. He also contrasts his childhood to the childhoods of his two children, who are tweens right now. This book is just so well written. It is conversational and humorous, if feels like the author is talking to you or maybe writing in a blog (haha). I definitely didn't have the same childhood experiences as the author, but I still felt connected to him in the pop culture and *stuff* that we grew up with. Overall, great book about more than just junk, though that is a part of it. Towards the end of the book, the author talks about his grandmother and mother and cleaning out their houses after they pass on. I felt like he was talking about my experience, especially in relation to estate sales. We just cleaned and sold my grandmother's house and so this section of the book felt timely to me. She has so much stuff, almost none of it actually valuable, except in sentimentality - like most of the things mentioned in this book. I would recommend this book to any elder millennial who grew up in the late 80s and 90s.

A delightful look at the toys that have meant so much to our child selves. This is a millennial, and perhaps young gen x, book, but I think all readers can get something out of it. Some of these toys are so iconic that they transcend generational divides. The writing is engaging and fun. Great book!

This book was a lot of fun to read. It not only let me look back on my childhood, but also on later years when I experienced so many of these fun times with my own kids, and now my grandkids. A rollicking fun ride.