This book was just plain fun to read! Thoroughly enjoyed it - so many forgotten memories brought back to mind and other memories refreshed.
Though I am just a bit older than the author, actually more of a '60's kid, I could still relate to almost everything in this book!I especially enjoyed the Toys chapter which included Saturday morning cartoons and commercials.
I highly recommend this look back ~ well worth the read!

I recently read Darryll Sherman's book and I'm still smiling. My memory is pretty bad, so reading this book was hilarious to remember old toys (toss across), movies (Brian's song), music (Pat Benatar) and even commercials (Ancient Chinese secret, huh?). I even learned something new! We had prefixes to our phone numbers. My grandma's was JU at the beginning of her phone number. Now "Pennsylvania 6-5000" makes sense! I could go on entertaining myself here, but I will just highly recommend this book. It'd be perfect for a birthday gift, especially for that person that has everything! I also think it will be great fun to read down the road when current things mentioned in the book (like e-bay, google, and x-box) will also be a thing of the past! Buy one for you and a friend and have a good laugh!

I just finished reading this book for the second time. What an enjoyable way to pass the time and what a lot of good old memories it re-awakened. I must admit I'm a wee bit older than the author and not the same gender but reading his book was like watching my little brothers growing up all over again. There was plenty I did relate to though - wonderful memories of a simpler time! My 23 year old son read my copy and I had a lot of fun responding to his questions with even more stories of days gone by. Read it and enjoy!

This book really captured for me what it was like growing up in the 70's. I was born in '62 and so much has changed. It was really refreshing to remember how much simpler childhood was back then. Playing 'war', being outside all the time, the bikes we had -- it was awesome. I hated the styles but it sure was fun re-living all of the memories. If you are around this age (or younger and want to know what it was like) get this book. You'll love it!!

Darryll Sherman's book is a smile inducing look back at childhood if you grew up during the decade of the 70's. If you're the kind of middle aged adult who is absorbed in your day to day life and haven't taken the time to look back, this book is sure to bring some unexpected delight as Sherman relives memories that the majority of us shared. The book is a quick read and provided a welcome respite at the end of my day as well as a great fodder for reminiscing with other "old timers" over the age of 45.

For the purpose of my work I will reveal my age. It is.........32. Why do I feel it necessary to do such a radical thing? It is a move of solidarity with everyone else over 30, those people who can say with authority those words children dread to hear, When I was a kid....... Darryl Sherman feels our pain and confusion. He is a child of the 70's and has found himself often saying just that. The world has changed so much since that time and the author decided that his life as a kid was good, so good it needed to be shared with both fellow 70's kids and those not lucky enough to live in those groovy times.
Darryl Sherman's family was living the American dream. Dad has a good job, Mom stayed at home, and they raised their four kids in a suburb of Seattle, Washington. The Sherman kids were free and wild in a neighborhood that was still totally safe and came back each night to a home cooked meal. Life was simple and as the reader will agree, simply wonderful.
The book's divided into sections such as what people did or didn't have in the 70's and of course the things that most interest kids of any era, play time, movies, music, family vacations, and cars. It is a look at daily life instead of focusing on the historical events of the time, that while interesting, was not the concern of kids and not welcome in happy reminiscing.
The section that was the most reveling to me was playtime. The life of a child has drastically changed since the 70's and even the 80's when I was a kid. Today's kids are glued to the TV watching the many channels of cartoons and using their cells to call or text their friends. The suggestion of going outside to play is met with disbelief. Why should they go outside when they get all they want while sitting on the couch?
The kids of today would find life in the 70's rough, but it was an wonderful time for the children lucky enough to live it. Summer days were spent outside, riding one speed bikes and inventing their own games that required no technology to play. It was the days of tag and war, when kids built their own `guns' out of wood and no one told them they couldn't use their weapons because guns promoted violence.
There was exploration, camps, and great tree forts. The tree fort wasn't from a snazzy kit, but was built out of what could be found. It was a time to get down and dirty and a chance to be architects while learning the valuable skills of change and compromise.
We have gained so much in the last thirty years, but we have lost a lot too. We have lost the innocence and security that allowed kids to play outside on the city streets and walk home from school. We have given kids lots of gadgets to replace the wild freedom, but it is a sorry substitute.