Lange, Alexandra (2022) Meet Me by the Fountain, an Inside History of the Mall, New York: Bloomsbury Publishes.

Reviewed by Prof. Joel Charles Snell

Fast Times at Ridgemont High is a cult 80’s classic. Stacy Hamilton (Jennifer Jason Leigh) copulates with a jerk and they don’t use birth control. She gets pregnant and he doesn’t get enough money to pay for an abortion. Later, she finds a good guy and they practice sexual outer course.

Much of the drama is surrounded by a MALL. Regiment Mall is the home of so many out of school activities. By the early 80’s malls have been around since the 50’s. Malls complimented the car, radial highway, and the segregation of lower income minorities.

The existence of these structures was that shopping was an “experience.” There may be a huge fountain in the middle, escalators rather than elevators, openness, phony trees and bushes. Every day was perfect because the mall was covered by a new age roof. One could go to a movie or restaurant. Then they started to die.

Why? The author notes that too many were built, online shopping prospered along with a host of other variables. This is a good read and a talented author. It also helps one decide if the death of the trolley was a General Motors plot or something else.