The Millennials: Connecting to America’s Largest Generation
Thom S. Rainer and Jess W. Rainer
Broadman & Holman, 2010, 288 pp., $22.99, BHPublishingGroup.com
We’ve been talking about the Millennial Generation (a.k.a. Millennials, Generation Next, Net Generation, Echo Boomers) since a 1993 article in Ad Age magazine called contemporary teens Generation Y.
This book updates what we already know by providing insights from 1,200 interviews focusing on the personal, professional and spiritual lives of the 78 million Americans born between 1980 and 2000.
Another benefit of this book is that is co-authored by father Thom Rainer (CEO of the Southern Baptists’ LifeWay Christian Resources) and Millennial son Jess Rainer (a banking executive).
We learn that 96 percent of Millennials feel they can “do something great” in life. Many say they are “spiritual,” but few consider themselves “religious.” They also are marrying late, seeking jobs where they can be mentored, and expecting a strong federal government to help them later on with health care and retirement.
If you feel you’ve heard all this before, you’ll still appreciate this book’s pastoral tone and dual-generational orientation.
Click here for a Q&A interview with the authors.
