Readability: 1
Length: 232 pp
Author: Alex and Brett Harris
Adolescence is a myth, and Alex and Brett Harris do an excellent job of exposing it. They defied the norm as teenagers and now call you to do so as well in Do Hard Things. Don’t just read this book, do it, do hard things!
In order to understand the modern “teenager” concept, we have to go back in time only a hundred years. At that time, right around the year 1900, a cascade of labor- and school-reform laws were passed in an attempt to protect kids from the harsh conditions in factories. These laws were good because conditions had been brutal, and children’s health and education suffered. Unfortunately, the laws had some unintended and far-reaching consequences. By completely removing children from the workplace and mandating school attendance through high school, teen’s once-established role as key producers and contributors came to an end. Suddenly their role was almost exclusively that of consumers.
Young people were suddenly stuck in a poorly defined category between childhood and adulthood. …Instead, the “teenager” was invented – a young person with most of the desires and abilities of an adult but few of the expectations or responsibilities.
