Last year, for my birthday (so 364 days ago now!), Geth got me an ’80s box filled with cool stuff like t-shirts (the Stranger Things t-shirt has become a wardrobe staple; sadly the ‘I Love The ’80s’ one got a hole in it after about two wears, though thinking about it, it would have been perfect to wear at Electric Dreams given the other clientele) and books about ’80s music, TV, and general nostalgia.
A 1980s Childhood by Michael A Johnson was one of these books, and ended up being one of my summer reads. It’s set out really well – the chapters each focus on a different aspect of pop culture such as music, TV, toys, and film, and comprise a short history of the topic interspersed with the personal recollections of the author (who was born in 1977). There’s also a list in each chapter of the most notable examples of ’80s bands, TV shows, etc.
For me, it was the personal recollections that I enjoyed the most – the majority of the pop culture history I know off by heart. It was a good read, and this next year I’m going to try and get round to all the other books that came in the ’80s box!