The Ones We've Been Waiting For

How a New Generation of Leaders Will Transform America

By: Charlotte Alter

Narrated by: Charlotte Alter

An optimistic look at the future of American leadership by a brilliant young reporter

A new generation is stepping up. There are now twenty-six millennials in Congress--a fivefold increase gained in the 2018 midterms alone. They are governing Midwestern cities and college towns, running for city councils, and serving in state legislatures. They are acting urgently on climate change (because they are going to live it); they care deeply about student debt (because they have it); they are utilizing big tech but still want to regulate it (because they understand how it works). In The Ones We've Been Waiting For, TIME correspondent Charlotte Alter defines the class of young leaders who are remaking the nation--how grappling with 9/11 as teens, serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, occupying Wall Street and protesting with Black Lives Matter, and shouldering their way into a financially rigged political system has shaped the people who will govern the future.

Through the experiences of millennial leaders--from progressive firebrand Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to Democratic presidential hopeful Pete Buttigieg to Republican up-and-comer Elise Stefanik--Charlotte Alter gives the big-picture look at how this generation governs differently than their elders, and how they may drag us out of our current political despair. Millennials have already revolutionized technology, commerce, and media and have powered the major social movements of our time. Now government is ripe for disruption. The Ones We've Been Waiting For is a hopeful glimpse into a bright new generation of political leaders, and what America might look like when they are in charge.

Must Listen!

If you’re a Millennial and interested in politics this is an absolute must read. It will give you hope that your hard work is worth it.

Excellent for Understanding of the Generations

I love this book so much that I ordered three copies for my wife and twin 14 year olds. We’re going to read a chapter a day and discuss what we read. School is on hold due to the Corona Virus.

Over all good biut too much labeling

Overall it was a good reading of some of the young leaders there were a few factual errors like that there were no successful Gay politicians in DC when Pete was a teenager since Barney Frank came out when he was about nine. It was a good look at some young leaders and their pluses and minuses a bit skewed towards socialists but that’s OK just not sure that we need to label boomers and millennials etc. because they overlap and ideologies mix more frequently than she lets on. She leaves out people like Gavin Newsom and others who are on the cusp instead choosing to pick sides still a useful look at some young leaders

insightful, if a *little* tedious

super satisfying with an applicable thesis, but a little surface level.

it kind of feels like a long walk through a bunch of individual stories, with analysis of those stories. But this analysis is often disorganized, and I only felt like I came away with any big themes or messages towards the end of the book. That being said, it's an important piece - if a little too generous to its subject matter (not much critical thinking or reflection on the interviews which make up the book).

Informative and hopeful for a better future.

I liked it but I'm not familiar with some of the people that were mentioned and the transition between stories was a little hard to follow. Other than that I liked the way the statistics were laid out and it gives me some hope for the future of our country.