By taking us inside the lives of young New Zealanders, the book illuminates from a new angle large-scale changes in our society: the rise and fall of domestic service, the impact of compulsory education, the movement of Pakeha and then Maori from country to city, the rise of consumer culture and popular psychology. "Teenagers" shows us how young people made sense of their personal and social transformations: in language and song and dress, at dances and picnics and social clubs, in talking and playing and reading. "Teenagers" provides an intimate and evocative insight into the lives of young people and the history of New Zealand.