"A hallmark of any good book is whether it provides directions for additional exploration of the topic under discussion. Obedient Sons certainly does this. . . . A work that greatly enriches the study of youth in America. I highly recommend this 'up and doing' book to historians of any age seeking to get a better grasp on the complicated role of young people in American history."—H-Net

"Wallach has produced a well-written, clearly organized book that makes a significant contribution to the discussion both in terms of topics and of interpretation. . . . This excellent book not only presents a more nuanced perspective on youth and generational change in America but also casts new light on such controversial matters as the nature and content of American Romanticism."—American Historical Review

"Obedient Sons remains a valuable summons to rethink our too-easy faith that the passage of generations means conflict and new directions. . . . Wallach's ambitious scholarship covers an impressive span of time, a daunting number of organizations, and texts of all kinds. . . . We find, in all, a nation more respectful of the past than we might have thought. This is an image worth pondering."—Journal of the Early Republic

"The scope of Wallach's research is impressive. . . . Obedient Sons stands as a pathbreaking work of cultural and intellectual history and will undoubtedly be read with interest for generations to come."—The New England Quarterly

"For students of American history, both in and out of the classroom, Wallach's intense and readable study of the origins of generational language in America and how it was used to link the past and the future is a stimulating and thought-provoking historical journey."—Publishers Weekly