Just finished "The Teenage Liberation Handbook: How to Quit School and Get a Real Life and Education" by Grace Llewellyn, and while I disagree with some of her assumptions, I think it has some compelling arguments against public schooling (or any kind of "school" setting as we commonly understand the term).

Right now I'm dividing my time between "Branded: The Buying and Selling of Teenagers," by Alissa Quart, about the weird influence of brands among teens and children (it's not exactly unbiased, so I'm giving it a critical read, but it's interesting, at least) and "The Glory and the Dream," by William Manchester, a big thick book on the history of the US from the '30s to the '70s. I'm hoping this one will give me some answers on what caused the cultural earthquake of 1968 and its aftershock in 1973 (or so), because that will give me a foothold on understanding Why We're Here.