Over the Next Hill: An Ethnography of RVing Seniors in North America, Second Edition

by Dorothy Ayers Counts, David R. Counts, David Reese Counts

Book Overview

Living either full or part time in a recreational vehicle has been an alternative lifestyle in North America since the 1920s. By the 1930s, Wally Byam's Airstream company could not keep up with the demand for his self-contained "house trailers." And today, "RVing" has become so widespread that, for perhaps two million retired North Americans, home is a recreational vehicle. In this book, anthropologists Dorothy and David Counts tell the story of...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1551114232
• ISBN13: 9781551114231
• Release Date: May 2001
• Publisher: Broadview Press Inc
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 1.08 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.9" x 8.9"

Customer Reviews

Rving Seniors

I finally understand why I want to be an RVer! The book was informative and the subject matter was thoroughly investigated. I'm passing the book around to my children so they will understand why their crazy Mom wants to hit the road as a Senior RVer.

A Scholarly Approach to RV's AND to Retirement

As a newcomer to the world of RV's I found this book both interesting and disquieting. Many of my intial observations as I moved through RV parks in the West last fall were confirmed. Others were better understood. But better yet, for a retired engineer, they were quantified. How do I compare to others in age, money, marital status? Are my thoughts as I select a park similar to others? How many people travel with dog and/or cats? How much does it cost?It also helps me understand what motivates people who stay at Quartzite or the Slabs. (Cultural/societal phenomenons that are hard to believe.) It draws clearer pictures of the aging couples I see and what brought them to where they are. It also shows where they're going in their life. It describes "trailer trash" in loving terms.In other words, its a study of retirement and eventually death. Its uniqueness is that it focus on RVers, specifically the fulltimers.The scholarly style may put some readers off but in my opinion, if you are thinking of selling the farm and fulltiming, you need this book before you buy that 40 foot motorhome. Or if you just want to head south in the winter, or camp by the lake near home you should have this book to understand the people around you. And even if you don't plan to have an RV ever, this will tell you about retired life, maybe more than you realy want to know.