FLASHBACK TO THE...FLY '90S!

A quick survey of “majorly cool things that helped define the decade.”

Trying for period language as well as trends in fashion, music, fads, and gadgets, Michaels opens with “off the hook” tallies of yesteryear’s toys, from Beanie Babies to the Nintendo 64, and goes on to record “dopest” trends in kids’ TV viewing (Teletubbies, Barney & Friends, The Powerpuff Girls) and snack food (Funyuns to Dunkaroos) on the way to the rise of the world wide web and AOL. Specific dates are rare, and the focus stays resolutely on North American and Western European culture. Specific historical or cultural events go unmentioned, but young readers will come away with a taste of the era’s pop culture. Fashion trends such as cargo pants, bucket hats, choker necklaces, and butterfly clips and popular hairstyles including pixie cuts, cornrows, and bobs are covered, too. A closing invitation to ask grown-ups what they remember from the decade should also have amusing results. In the mix of stock period photos and Rebar’s cartoon illustrations, characters are diverse. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

A superfly overview.