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Leisureville: Adventures in America's Retirement Utopias | 
 enlarge | Author: Andrew D. Blechman
Publisher: Atlantic Monthly Press
Category: Book
List Price: $25.00
Buy New: $14.98
You Save: $10.02 (40%)
New (29) Used (6) from $14.98
Avg. Customer Rating:  37 reviews
Sales Rank: 26649
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 320
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 8.9 x 6.3 x 1.1
ISBN: 0871139812
Dewey Decimal Number: 306.3809759
EAN: 9780871139818
ASIN: 0871139812
Publication Date: May 13, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: Brand new item. Over 3.5 million customers served. Order now. Selling online since 1995. Order with confidence. Code: B20080818211952T
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Product Description
When his next-door neighbors in a quaint New England town suddenly pick up and move to a gated retirement community in Florida, Andrew D. Blechman is astonished by their stories. Larger than Manhattan, with a golf course for every day of the month, two downtowns, its own newspaper, radio, and TV stations, The Villages is a city of nearly one hundred thousand (and growing), missing only one thing: children. More than twelve million people will soon live in these communities, and to get to the bottom of the trend, Blechman delves into life in the senior utopia. He offers a hilarious first-hand report on all its peculiarities, from ersatz nostalgia and golf-cart mania to manufactured history and the residents’ surprisingly active sex life, and introduces us to dozens of outrageous characters. Leisureville is also a serious look at a major and underreported trend, only to get bigger as the baby boomers retire. Blechman travels to Arizona to show what has happened after decades of segregation. He investigates the government of these “instant” cities, attends a builder’s conference, speaks with housing experts, and examines the implications of millions of Americans dropping out of society and closing the gates on kids.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 32 more reviews...
 Leisureville August 8, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
Great book. We live in a community on the outskirts of The Villages. We're so glad we decided NOT to buy in the Villages 5 years ago. This book just reiterated what we thought at the time. Was great to read about all the places we're familiar with, but the behind the scenes info was an eye-opener.
Those looking to move into a "retirement" community should read this book before making any decisions.
Leisureville July 30, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This book is very funny in some parts
and very enlightning in others.
This tells it like it is and has a history lesson to boot.
Raining on the parade of Golfer's Utopia! Hilarious! July 24, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I wasn't sure what to expect when I first picked up this book. However once I started reading I couldn't stop. Blechman's perspective and quirky humor made me laugh out loud. This book is funny and also sad but true. The premise of this book is that a large block our our aging population has opted to spend their remaing years in a high school version of Utopia. If you think spending the rest of your life on a golf course is a good idea, then you will hate this book! But if you care about other people and want to make a contribution to life and actually develop a conscience, then you will be appalled at what the "Leisurevillers" have chosen. I think this is an important book and would not be surprised if it becomes required reading at the college sociology level. This is a GOOD BOOK. I highly recommend it!
 Leasureville July 20, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
The author of this book missed a golden opportunity to create a viable work about the vast changes happening to the baby boomer population just now beginning retirement. Instead, he chose to concentrate on such silly things as how "age restricted" developments are, in his sad little mind, a "vast discriminatory action". Obviously he is upset because he is too young to move to the Villages. He also has an ax to grind with anyone who became very rich by hard work, and/or is a Republican. He claims he prefers his broken down hometown with derelicts living above stores, crumbling infrastructure, and smelly dumpsters to the beautiful, clean, well managed towns available to the residents of The Villages. The fact that he openly admits to driving a car that left a puddle of oil everywhere he went in The Villages, and that he didn't care about it is a sign of his lack of character. He spent a very small amount of time actually at The Villages, and didn't even interview some of the people he chose to demonize. This is just another sign of his lack of character. I also have a problem with his assumption that any woman who plays softball must be a lesbian.
Anyway, being a resident of The Villages maybe I am a bit protective of our wonderful life here. I do think the author was able to accurately portray our daily life, and the love we all have for this place. He is correct when he says all we do is play all day and drive around in golf carts. We worked all of our lives, scrimped and saved to be able to earn enough money so that we can live like this. Maybe he will understand when he grows up, but with his major character flaws I doubt it.
I LOVED this book - Dennis Nagy (Author Dating 9-11) July 19, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I am seriously thinking about retirement in the villages, this book was THE BEST ! If you are thinking of retiring to ANY adult (over-55) community, this book is a great primer. It talks about the social atmosphere, the politics, the government and the finances. It's NEVER boring and always insightful. I DID disagree with the authors conclusion, but thats probably because I am at least a generation and a half older and I can appreciate the laid back aspects of the other retirees that he profiled in the book. This was worth every penny and I couldn't put it down...now I am lending it to many of my friends.
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