Millennials have been stereotyped as lazy, entitled, narcissistic, and developmentally delayed. In fact, they are the hardest working and most educated generation in American history, a generation that poured unprecedented amounts of time and money into preparing themselves for the 21st century market. Yet here they are: poorer, more medicated, more precariously employed, and with less of a social safety net than their parents or even their grandparents. Malcolm Harris, himself a Millennial, decided to conduct a meticulous, data driven analysis of the cultural, technological, and (especially) economic forces over the past 40 years that have shaped Millennial lives. Examining broad trends like the professionalization of childhood, runaway student debt, the rise of the intern, mass incarceration, social media, and more, he charts the rise of an American ethos so normalized that we forget to notice it: the treatment of children as investments, and he dares us to confront the consequences when those children grow up. Gripping, mercilessly argued, and deeply informed, essential reading for anyone ready to take a hard look at how we got here and where we're headed if we don't change course fast. Malcolm Harris is a freelance writer and an editor at The New Inquiry.