“Growing Up Levittown”: Inside the Memoir Rewriting America’s First Suburb

“Growing up Levittown” is a 2011 book by Steve Bergsman, who grew up in Levittown in the 1950s and 1960s. He details the community, the world’s first suburb, which was built for returning World War II veterans. The book does a good job of showing a place that defied expectations.

The book is autobiographical in nature. Bergsman uses his life story to show what life was like in Levittown in those early years and how that conformity affected Bergsman and shaped his worldview. One can see the town through Bergsman’s eyes. Do you think autobiographies are a good method for getting readers to see what an experience was like?

“Growing up Levittown” Summary

“Growing up Levittown” is essentially a linear autobiography that follows the life and childhood of the author Steve Bergsman. He grew up in Island Trees, an area of Levittown. In the book, Bergsman, a journalist who wrote several books, writes about his upbringing. In doing so, he covers several topics, like school, music, drugs, violence, and his various friends and girlfriends. He does a good job throughout in showing how the conformity of the community shaped his thinking and the thinking of his friends.

There are two features in “Growing up Levittown” that enhance its readability. First, Bergsman cites several other books that critique Levittown, New York, and the cultural effects it had. Second, Levittown, in the 1950s, produced some noteworthy musicians. Billy Joel and Eddie Money (who graduated from Island Trees High School with Bergsman) and several others. There is an entire chapter dedicated to music. It is a tour de force for some of the best music ever produced in the United States.

Levittown, New York 101

Levittown, New York, the town detailed in “Growing up Levittown, is interesting. It was the first suburb ever built. It was constructed by William Levitt in 1947 in a former potato field. The intent was to construct housing for returning World War II veterans.

The most interesting thing about this planned community is that all the houses were the same, and there were 7 village greens constructed with stores and a pool. Another interesting thing about the town is that Levitt was a racist. He wrote it into the contracts for the homes that they could not be sold to people of color or Jewish people. The fear was that having those ‘undesirables’ would drive down property values. Ironically, Levitt was Jewish himself.

The effect was to make a community where most of the people looked the same, lived in the same type of houses, and had the same type of recreational opportunities. This is very important. Levittown was a trendsetter. In a decade of conformity, the 1950s, suburbs, like Levittown, popped up outside major cities all over the United States.

Why You Should Read This Book

“Growing up Levittown” will appeal to a large segment of the population. Obviously, the book will appeal to those who live in or are from Levittown. That is a relatively small population. This book will also appeal to everyone who grew up in a suburb. Levittown was the first such suburb, so the story of conformity in the town will appeal to a lot of people.

Conclusion

“Growing Up Levittown” is a book that should be read by many people. It is a period piece that looks at an important part of American history. The book tells the story of the first suburb, but Levittown was certainly not the last suburb. In essence, this is a story about America.