The new 240-page photography book “American Youth” examines the newest generation of 18 to 24-year-olds in detail, observing young couples and Mormon missionaries, debutante balls and drunken tailgate stupors, war widows and B-boys, street kids and lobstermen. How are they different, and how are they exactly the same as the generations that came before?

On these pages are Christian rock fans, lesbian gangstas and Obama volunteers. There are would-be pop stars waiting for a shot on American Idol, organic farmers living the hippie dream and tattooed Cobra gang members brooding in the Window Rock jail, Navajo Reservation. Another series of photographs asks young New Yorkers to think big: If you had the chance, what question would you ask God?