Every translator gets a real intro in the book, in their own voice, before a single term. Short version here; the full page is what the print book actually opens with.
Born ~1901–1924 · teens mid-1910s to early 1940s
“Keep your chin up. Do your part. Make it work.”
“I'm eighteen, it's 1943, and I've got exactly enough nickels for the streetcar if I don't stop at the fountain first, which I always do, on account of I'm a sap for the place.”
Read their translation →
Born 1928–1945 · teens early 1940s to early 1960s
“Be respectable. Be resourceful. Don't make a fuss, unless it's important.”
“The percolator goes every single morning before anybody's dressed, and that sound is what ‘everything is still fine’ sounds like in my house.”
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Born 1946–1964 · teens late 1950s to early 1980s
“We can change the world… also why is the world on fire?”
“Seventeen, 1967, and I've got opinions about the music, the war, and every last rule in this house, and I am not shy about a single one of them at the supper table.”
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Born 1965–1980 · teens late 1970s to 1990s
“I don't need your approval… also please don't touch my mixtape.”
“Key's on a shoelace, not a chain, because the chain broke back in sixth grade and nobody's ever fixed it. That's the whole house's maintenance plan in one object.”
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Born 1981–1996 · teens late 1990s to late 2000s
“I'm trying my best. My best is… questionable. Anyway.”
“Okay so, hi. 👋 (Why did I wave. They can't see me. I'm literally the worst.)”
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Born ~1997–2012 · teens 2010s to early 2020s
“Everything is content, nothing is that deep, also everything is that deep.”
“Record scratch. Freeze frame. Yeah, that's me, I know how this looks.”
Read their translation →Gen Alpha writes the entries themselves, they're the source language here, not a translation target. Their sign-off: “6-7.”