An interesting, but not compelling, walk down memory lane.

Author Kate Kennedy narrates her collection of essays about growing up in the 90s and 2000s. She writes about many specific products from that era in a way that made me think, “oh my gosh, I haven’t thought about that in years!” Topics include American Girl dolls and books, shopping at the mall, daybeds, AOL Messenger, Christian purity culture going out tops and embellished jeans, and sorority culture.

But, as she herself admits, none of her experiences were particularly unique. And in that way, she embraces her Be There in Five, middle of the road persona.
The narration is a bit breathless. And I wasn’t fond of her penchant for wordplay (e.g. things like our interest in Niki Taylor was tailor made for teenage envy—not a direct quote but an example of what I find cloying about her work).

If you are a fan of her podcast, you will probably love this book. It’s authentic to that voice.

Strong essays were the Christian purity culture one and how it tied in to her struggles with sexuality and her experience as a Girlboss with a viral product.

Overall I didn’t love this one, but also didn’t hate it. A good listen for the right listener.

I absolutely loved this book. I am thankful NetGalley provided me the audiobook. I truly enjoyed listening to the author read the book. She made me both laugh and cry with her. I loved the cultural references in the book mixed with more serious topics. I cannot recommend this book more for women in the same age and stage as the author. This was outstanding.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4. This book was so nostalgic for me. I was born in 1989, so pop culture of the 90’s and early 2000’s was seriously my entire life. Boy Meets World, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, AIM, Backstreet Boys, Now and Then, 10 Things I Hate About You, and American Girl Dolls were just a few of my favorites things of this era.

Kate’s ability to weave in humor throughout the book, even during dark/heavy topics was done very well. I felt like there was a lot of fluff and repetitive themes at certain points. I wish she would have explored how some of these things became so popular to millennials. Whereas I felt like I was listening to more of a podcast than a book.

For Readers Who Like:
- Pop culture
- Millennial nostalgia
- TGIF

Thank you @netgalley and @stmartinspress for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

Kate Kennedy reflects on what it means to grow up as a millennial in a way that will make you laugh out loud one moment and tear up in another. This book was full of so many references from my own childhood and really brought out the nostalgia. She shines a light on so many different topics about growing up as a girl in the 90s and 00s that caused me to reflect on the impact of this time and the culture on my own upbringing. Kate narrates her own story and having her read really enhanced the experience.

I didn’t go into this prepared to be sitting back, listening to basically my life story be told to me, but here I am. Sure there were small details different, but pretty much the whole time I was sitting here going “lol same”. This took me a while to listen to, but honestly, it was because some parts hit me right in my feels and I was getting emotional. Kate narrated this herself, which I loved. I absolutely adored it because she was real. You could hear her getting emotional over topics, and it felt absolutely right. I felt validated, and I felt seen. Overall, this is a great read (or listen!) for anyone trying to figure out why they might feel a certain type of way (I see you, Jesus Camp) or trying to get clues to the behavior of an entire generation.

I had never heard of Kate Kennedy or her podcast, Be There in Five, but the premise of this collection of essays examining the females millennial zeitgeist was such a nostalgic read. I connected with Kate on so many levels. The pop culture references, the sleepovers, the music.

Kate does touch on hard topics, too; and since I listen to audiobooks mostly in my car, I found myself driving and laughing out loud or crying, or even talking back to Kate when she touched on a topic that was close to my heart, too.

Nonfiction books are difficult to review, but if you’re a millennial, this is definitely a book that will speak to your “entitled” soul.

Kate narrates this audiobook, and that honestly made this audiobook 1000 times better. Listening to her voice catch on tough topics or talking about motherhood.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the #gifted audiobook for review.

Loved this one! I’ve mostly enjoyed it! Light and breezy with some good insights sprinkled in. Kate is so funny and smart and relatable—some of the content is extremely niche but very nostalgic and I’m happy I listened to it!

While I refuse to call myself a millennial (that time period is so broad and I am definitely on the older side of the time frame) this memoir (yes, it's a memoir even thought the author says it isn't numerous times ir) had all the nostalgia of growing up in the 90s and so on.
I was able to think back to my life at the time and laugh along with the author about the silly things I used to do as well. But was a little too old some of the references that my younger sisters were more into.
Even though this memoir starts off light, it does hit upon more serious topics such as body image and navigating college life and careers.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the audiobook. I was super impressed by how fast the author spoke and had to listen at 1.5 speed (I'm normally a 2.0 and above kinda gal)

Once upon a Millennial

💿 💿 💿 💿 💿/ 5

If you were born in the 80s this book is for you. I absolutely loved it. It is hilarious and also helped me to understand and look back on so many aspects of my childhood! Parts are laugh out loud funny but also thought provoking!

The writing kind of reminds me of Danny Pellegrino (who I adore) with many references to cheesy 90s things! The audiobook quality is great too, it is a pretty light book to listen to on a commute or walking the pups!!

There are so many great references including but not limited to Baywatch, American girl dolls, slumber parties, 2nd fridge money families and the like. It is great!

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan for the digital advanced listeners copy!!

I am a millennial, and a lot of Kate Kennedy's book resonated with me. I absolutely loved her writing, and all of her references were spot on. I think this book does a fabulous job of articulating a collective memory, though it was also very much a memoir and somewhat specific to her own experiences. I especially loved her first part about the 90's/00's. Overall, I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone who has every felt unable to live up to societal expectation, who was ever ghosted on AIM, or who thought butterfly clips and loopy hand-writing were the epitome of cool. The narration was fabulous!

This was such a fun listen and filled my millennial heart. All of the pop culture references of our time was a time capsule to simpler times. I loved Kate’s vulnerability and she did a great job narrating.

What a fun, nostalgic book!! As a 90's kid, I found Kate Kennedy's story relatable. Also, the fact that she's a Swiftie made me love it even more. Kate was also a great narrator. You could hear the emotion and passion in her voice, as she was telling her story.

As a millennial I resonated with much of this book and loved having memories pop up while listening to her go through her own memories, like the American Girl doll still sitting at my dads house, hours spent at limited too, and the differences between then and now. I'd recommend this to any millennial girl looking for a lighthearted read that they can relate to.

This is my childhood in a book. WOW! If you’re a 90’s kid, read it! The references to Backstreet Boys, Gilmore Girls, Full House and so many other topics were so nostalgic. I also highly recommend the audiobook!

This was a wonderful read! I am around the same age as Kate and the nostalgia I was having was amazing. Kate really touches on the truths that Millenial females have to go through at a young age and what it leads to later on in life. We have lived through so many different changes that life can often be overwhelming, but growing up in this time has brought us some of the best aspects of life. Between the fashion, the movies, the music, the start of blogs just to name a few had me feeling all the feels.

Thank you for allowing me to listen to this book early. It really brought me back to my childhood and I felt seen with all of the harder topics that she discussed. Thank you for this book <3

Were you born between 1981 and 1995? Did you survive Y2K? Do you know the exact musical melody of dial-up internet? THEN you must listen to this book immediately!

Kate Kennedy was raised in Richmond, VA and made me laugh out loud and even cry a few tears while listening to her dive back into time and recount all the things that millennials have survived and maybe even why we are who we are! Her cultural references made me laugh at myself so hard and I immediately followed her on instagram and subscribed to her podcast like the fan girl millennial that I am!

I knew before starting this book that non fiction is my pure wheelhouse of audiobooks, so I knew that I would want to listen to this one and I was right! Listening to Kate Kennedy share her own words and hear her laugh at herself and choke up was just the right addition to my commutes and hours of house chores. While I want to branch out this year in my audio listening, it was nice to start the year with one I knew that would be a home run.

My first audiobook of the year and although I completely loved it, it took me a weird amount of time to finish it! Made me realize how much I want to find more time in my days and weeks to make audiobooks a priority.

I wouldn't call myself a "Beth" but I am a fan of Kate's Podcast, Be There In Five and this book was even better. Same vibe and truly the perfect deep dive on what it was like as a tween/ teen for millennials. I am a few years older than Kate, which in the 90's / early 2000's can make a huge difference in experiences, not to mention where you are up, economical standing etc. If you also identify as an elder millennial and love all things pop culture and nostalgia, then this book is for you.

p.s. grab a tissue for the life update at the end. I hadn't kept with with Kate in recent years so I was finding out in real time the news that life. update she shared and it brought me to tears and filled me with so much joy.

I was initially drawn to this for the cover. I knew nothing about the author or the plot. To my delight, the story did not disappoint. It evoked a sense of being right back in my teenage years filled with nostalgia!

I wasn't aware of Kate Kennedy or her podcast, but the cover of her book spoke to me--as a fellow Millennial. Part memoir, part Millennial trip down memory lane, Kennedy addresses what it was like to grown up as a Millennial. The pop culture references that were "you had to be there" moments, to addressing issues that us Millennials had to grown through and didn't realize the effect of until we were old enough to reflect on much later in life to see how growing up in that age affected us as people. Kennedy has gained a new fan!

This book had been on my TBR since the cover was released, even though I had never listened to the author's podcast. I loved the title and the cover and as a pop culture loving millennial, I knew I wanted to read it.

I thought this would be a light lookback on the pop culture I grew up loving, but it was so much more. There were light and fluffy chapters, but it was also empowering, feminist and relatable. The author narrates the audiobook, and hearing her emotion throughout the book really sold this on audio for me.

While it does delve deep into millennial culture, it's also deeply personal to Kate so it reads as nonfiction and a memoir in one. I loved the pop culture references throughout that really brought me back to my childhood and college days (hello statement tops and chunky necklaces). She really brings to light how it's been frowned upon to like "girly" things, but empowers you to just like the things you like no matter what anyone else thinks. Some chapters were a little repetitive, but Kate as the narrator really kept me engaged, and I'll definitely be checking out her podcast after listening to her book.

Huge thank you to MacMillen Audio and NetGalley for the audio ARC!