Reviews (For Leisureville in the News, click here.)

“Fascinating … Organized around recreation and promotion, The Villages welcomes residents with a ubiquitous radio station that repeats, ‘It’s a beautiful day in the Villages!’ and maps that depict the outside world as ‘a white void.’ Residents drive $25,000 golf carts to prefab downtowns, complete with histories invented by the developer, where cover bands play ‘Brick House.’ Not having children around seems to free the retirees to act like adolescents. Frank, a man in his 70s who is said to have had two heart attacks and a stroke, is asked to describe his typical day. ‘Get high and play Nintendo,’ he says. ‘I’m not much of a cook, so I just eat a lot of pepperoni.” A nation of college students has found its gray figurehead.”

— John Leland, New York Times Book Review

"Blechman enters The Villages ... an escapist community where seniors binge drink and experience their share of Viagra-fueled hook-ups." — The Cleveland Plain Dealer

“If you've never heard of the Villages, a residential development in central Florida, welcome to the club, but after reading Leisureville, the first thing I have to say is: Listen up. ... As one who qualified for residency in the Villages more than a dozen years ago, I cannot imagine living in a community in which the dominant themes are leisure and make-believe, from which children are barred except as infrequent and closely monitored visitors, where all but a handful of residents are middle-class whites, where the "government" is totally under the control of the Morse family… Blechman sympathizes with residents there on one important count -- their desire to find community, … and he found a number of residents whom he liked, but the artificiality of the place and its bewildering array of rigid covenants appalled him. One can only shudder to think what the late Jane Jacobs… would have to say about the sterile desert described by Blechman.” — Jonathan Yardley, The Washington Post

"Blechman plunges into a surreal world of argyle socks, immaculate lawns, heavy drinking, bingo tournaments, and Viagra-fueled promiscuity. It's a fun ride, thanks to Blechman's keen eye for detail and quirky sense of humor."— The Boston Globe

"If you are contemplating retirement or know anyone who is doing so, I urge you to read Leisureville. You will not find a better written, more entertaining or more insightful account of the myriad implications of the segregation of our society by age and income." — Daily Kos

"Compulsively readable.... Blechman's greatest strength is his ability not only to make you enjoy reading about the seemingly banal—his first book was about pigeons—but he also makes you think about it. That is one of those clichés that reviewers frequently use, but it doesn't make it any less true."

— Baltimore City Paper

"Mr. Blechman is clearly impassioned about closing the generational divide.... He is a thorough reporter." — The Wall Street Journal

“Part investigative journalism, part humor and part social critique, the book explores the attraction of these communities, what it’s really like behind the gated walls … and what the phenomenon means for America at large. Blechman is no ideologue. He is quick to point out the perceived faults of age-segregated communities, but he’s not blind to their appeal, either." — The AARP Bulletin

“With 78 million boomers hitting retirement age and seniors-only communities recruiting 55-year-olds, Blechman raises the prospect of a significant portion of the population retiring into never-never land.” — Mother Jones

"Blechman's book is an account of the Villages, in Florida, the largest gated retirement development in the world—or, put another way, a giant playpen for people 55 and older ... consisting of 75,000 people who have freed themselves from the obligations of citizenship. [It] makes you wonder ... whether altruism is merely a fragile cultural construct doomed by the infantilizing forces of lifestyle marketing." — The Boston Globe

“A sometimes hilarious, sometimes poignant excursion into the sexually active adult lifestyle, filled with four-letter words that don't include AARP.”

— The Miami Herald

"Reading Blechman’s book is intriguing, appalling, but always engaging. His description of The Villages reads like a science fiction novel. Highly recommended.” — Library Journal (starred review)

“Leisureville is certainly an eye-opener to yet another development technique to disconnect and bisect our towns and communities, to remove interaction among generations as well as develop our land into cookie-cutter housing and amenities with no consideration for local resources and the natural environment.... Blechman has produced a valuable book, which makes every reader ask his/herself: Is this the future of the United States? Leisureville is a must-read for everyone from young adults to retirees. — INTBAU

“Blechman describes the carefree lives of colorful residents, including a swinging senior known as "Mr. Midnight," but ends up questioning the very premise of age-segregated communities.... He explains how the multimillionaire developer of The Villages owns and controls just about everything, including the daily newspaper and radio station. It is a company town in which residents have little say and less oversight in how their lives are governed.” — Sarasota Herald-Tribune

"The author confronts the troubling trend toward isolation and escapism."

— Publishers Weekly

"Blechman reminds the rest of us who truly enjoy our communities and the quirks and joys of living with people of different ages, backgrounds and cultures to acknowledge what we have and to take steps to ensure that our communities are accessible, nurturing and safe for residents of ALL ages and needs. That’s an outcome that takes participation and engagement. Are you up for it?" — New Urban Mom

"Leisureville is one of the best non-fiction books of 2008... did I mention Leisureville is one awesome read?"— Modern Girl Style

"Leisureville is not only an entertaining chronicle ... but also a perceptive analysis of the social, economic, and political implications of segregated, privatized living."

— The Boston Globe

"Blechman highlights the social pitfalls of communities where people 55 and older have scant civic engagement and interaction with young people."

— Orlando Sentinel

"A sharp take on care- and child-free “Active Adults” communities, where golf carts have replaced the automobile, downtowns are make-believe, the days are filled with sunshine and restrictive covenants enforce conformity." — Kirkus Reviews

“The guiding concern of Blechman’s inquiry is what this age-based phenomenon means for us as a society, and what its moral implications are for the future.... Part exurban exposé, part postmodern Roald Dahl parable, “Leisureville” reads more accurately like a dark Stanley Elkin novel.” — The Jewish Daily Forward

“A lively and thoughtful account of a lifestyle that can be at once entertaining and appalling. The book is full of warm, appealing characters. It also has tinges of the sadness and wistfulness that often accompany the later years."

— National Post (Canada)

"Simultaneously entertaining and appalling, a mesmerizing read."

— The Barnes and Noble Review

"Blechman examines the societal implications of seniors-only living." — Kiplinger's Retirement Report

“[Blechman] uncovers the soft underbelly of The Villages” — The Star Ledger, NJ

“Blechman surprises, amuses and intently informs ... as he tackles the rise of the age-segregated retirement village. A highly relevant book, as everyone is touched in some way by so-called generational divides. — The Berkshire Eagle

"A new kind of suburbia ... without children." — Savannah Morning News

"Blechman takes a hard look at life inside the gates while exploring the phenomenon of age-restricted retirement communities." — Sumter County Times, FL

“What Blechman found were people in their 60s and 70s on permanent vacation. In The Villages, only good news is published in the community newspaper, Muzak-type music is piped over the local radio station and anyone younger than 55 comes under scrutiny and is asked for a pass.” — Coulee News, WI

"A great book...." — MetroWest Daily News, MA

“Imagine a retirement community larger than Manhattan with its own TV station, newspaper and radio station. Nearly 100,000 people live in "Florida's friendliest Hometown." The Villages has everything except children. The author, Blechman, explores the concept of age segregation in this comic and appalling book.”

— Sand Springs Leader, OK

"Sadly enough, the situation laid out by Mr. Blechman will no doubt be played out millions of times in the years to come, as northerners desert their long term communities for a place in the sun. Churches, charities, and community infrastructure will be collateral damage as baby boomers migrate south."

— TopRetirements.com

"This lively book reveals why older Americans are flocking to these geritopias and what happens to our social fabric when they opt to live in gated leisurevilles where no children are allowed." — Tucson Citizen, AZ

"... funny, outrageous and disturbing, sometimes all at once. Is this really what we can expect after retirement?" — Bookstream.com

“By using what social scientists call the participant-observer approach, Blechman gives readers a great sense of what it’s like to live in developments for senior citizens. … Most of the book is not, however, an outlet for the author’s social analysis. … The majority of the book provides Blechman a great outlet to display his storytelling and descriptive skills.” — Eureka Reporter (CA)