What will the next generation of children be like? Why have we lost interest in politics? Why are our houses getting bigger while our households are shrinking? How serious is the surge of interest in ‘values’ and ‘spirituality’? Is multiculturalism dead? Has our egalitarian ideal collapsed under the weight of a more competitive, more divided society? Fifteen years ago, Hugh Mackay wrote the bestseller Reinventing Australia that analysed, with forensic skill, what was happening to our society. Now, in Advance Australia … Where? he takes another long, hard look at us. While we enjoy unprecedented levels of prosperity and the promise of more to come, we are still battling an epidemic of depression, taking on record levels of debt, and yearning for a deeper sense of meaning in our lives. While many Australians complain about feeling powerless and isolated, Mackay sees some encouraging signs that we are learning how to absorb the impact of the revolutionary changes that have reshaped us.
