Describes the important world, national, and cultural developments of the first decade of the new millennium.

Pop Goes the Decade: The 2000s comprehensively examines popular culture in the 2000s, placing the culture of the decade in historical context and showing how it not only reflected but also influenced its times. Pop Goes the Decade: The 2000s starts with a timeline of major historical pop culture events of the 2000s, followed by an introduction describing what the U.S. was like at the beginning of the new millennium and how it would change throughout the decade. Next come chapters broken down by medium: television, sports, music, movies, literature, technology, media, and fashion and art. A chapter on controversies in popular culture is followed by a chapter on game-changers, featuring 20 individuals who made a major impact on the U.S. in the 2000s. Finally, a conclusion shows the impact that pop culture in the 2000s has had on the U.S. in the years since. This volume serves as a comprehensive resource for high school and college students studying popular culture in the 2000s. It provides a summary of total impact, plus specific insights into each individual topic. It also includes a wide swath of the scholarship produced on the subject to date.

The editors at LIFE vigorously carry on the traditions of excellence in photography, in journalism, and in telling the story of our country and our world which began with LIFE magazine in 1936 by founding editor and publisher, Henry R. Luce. They have published books on a broad range of subjects, including New York Times bestsellers One Nation, LIFE Picture Puzzle and The American Journey of Barack Obama .

Surveys the political, social, and cultural trends of the first decade of the twenty-first century which included terrorist attacks, the first African American president, global financial collapse, and new inventions like the iPod and Facebook.

Afghanistan, 1975: Twelve-year-old Amir is desperate to win the local kite-fighting tournament and his loyal friend Hassan promises to help him. But neither of the boys can foresee what will happen to Hassan that afternoon, an event that is to shatter their lives. After the Russians invade and the family is forced to flee to America, Amir realises that one day he must return to Afghanistan under Taliban rule to find the one thing that his new world cannot grant him: redemption.

The first decade of the new millennium ushered in an age of unprecedented amounts of information through the Internet and electronic media. The US was attacked in 2001, changing the face of New York City forever. There was economic slowdown, political divisiveness, and unprecedented terrorism. US-led invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq achieved their initial goals, then devolved into bloody guerrilla conflicts. International competition for energy resources escalated dramatically. Then, in 2008, a time of change began when Barack Obama was elected president. As the 2000s moved forward, people changed the way they socialized, worked, and even entertained.

Not since the 1960s have the events of a single decade so transformed the United States. Life re-lives events in words and pictures with everything from the Harry Potter phenomenon to the election of Barack Obama covered.