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Zoned in the USA
by Sonia A. Hirt • 2014
The detached home with its own yard is globally rare. American zoning manufactured it at scale.
4.01
136
Zoned in the USA Summary
Zoned in the USA 91%
The detached home with its own yard is globally rare. American zoning manufactured it at scale.
by Sonia A. Hirt 2014
4.01
136 ratings
Nowhere to Live
by James S. Burling • 2024
Why can't Americans afford homes? A century of rules made building them illegal.
4.00
12
Nowhere to Live Summary
Nowhere to Live 90%
Why can't Americans afford homes? A century of rules made building them illegal.
by James S. Burling 2024
4.00
12 ratings
Behind the Green Mask
by Rosa Koire • 2011
A veteran appraiser found that green policies are a UN blueprint to abolish private property.
4.28
365
Behind the Green Mask Summary
Behind the Green Mask 90%
A veteran appraiser found that green policies are a UN blueprint to abolish private property.
by Rosa Koire 2011
4.28
365 ratings
The Option of Urbanism
by Christopher B. Leinberger • 2007
America's car suburbs were built by policy, not consumer choice. The market now wants the opposite.
3.89
185
The Option of Urbanism Summary
The Option of Urbanism 89%
America's car suburbs were built by policy, not consumer choice. The market now wants the opposite.
by Christopher B. Leinberger 2007
3.89
185 ratings
Escaping the Housing Trap
by Charles L. Marohn Jr. • 2024
Housing can't be both affordable shelter and a good investment. That conflict is the trap.
4.37
503
Escaping the Housing Trap Summary
Escaping the Housing Trap 89%
Housing can't be both affordable shelter and a good investment. That conflict is the trap.
by Charles L. Marohn Jr. 2024
4.37
503 ratings
Why Nothing Works
by Marc J. Dunkelman • 2025
Progressivism has two souls: one builds, one stops. The stopper won, so nothing gets built.
3.79
1k+
Why Nothing Works Summary
Why Nothing Works 89%
Progressivism has two souls: one builds, one stops. The stopper won, so nothing gets built.
by Marc J. Dunkelman 2025
3.79
1k+ ratings
Who Owns England?
by Guy Shrubsole • 2019
The secret 1% who own half of England: unmasking the aristocrats, royals, and oligarchs.
4.21
1k+
Who Owns England? Summary
Who Owns England? 89%
The secret 1% who own half of England: unmasking the aristocrats, royals, and oligarchs.
by Guy Shrubsole 2019
4.21
1k+ ratings
The Captured Economy
by Brink Lindsey • 2017
Why the economy works for the rich and against everyone else. Four policy levers, no conspiracy.
3.89
416
The Captured Economy Summary
The Captured Economy 88%
Why the economy works for the rich and against everyone else. Four policy levers, no conspiracy.
by Brink Lindsey 2017
3.89
416 ratings
Boom Bust
by Fred Harrison • 1999
Land speculation drives the 18-year boom-bust cycle. The next crash already builds.
3.95
38
Boom Bust Summary
Boom Bust 88%
Land speculation drives the 18-year boom-bust cycle. The next crash already builds.
by Fred Harrison 1999
3.95
38 ratings
The Power in the Land
by Fred Harrison • 1983
An 18-year land cycle, not interest rates, drives recessions. Economics missed it entirely.
4.13
15
The Power in the Land Summary
The Power in the Land 88%
An 18-year land cycle, not interest rates, drives recessions. Economics missed it entirely.
by Fred Harrison 1983
4.13
15 ratings
The Death and Life of Great American Cities
by Jane Jacobs • 1961
Slums with low crime and safe sidewalks: the invisible logic cities follow when planners look away.
4.29
20k+
The Death and Life of Great American Cities Summary
The Death and Life of Great American Cities 88%
Slums with low crime and safe sidewalks: the invisible logic cities follow when planners look away.
by Jane Jacobs 1961
4.29
20k+ ratings
This Land Is Our Land
by Ken Ilgunas • 2018
America once roamed freely across private land. Europe has the rules that could bring that back.
4.01
330
This Land Is Our Land Summary
This Land Is Our Land 88%
America once roamed freely across private land. Europe has the rules that could bring that back.
by Ken Ilgunas 2018
4.01
330 ratings
Walkable City
by Jeff Speck • 2012
America's downtowns died for parking. The rules for bringing them back, starting at the curb.
4.32
9k+
Walkable City Summary
Walkable City 88%
America's downtowns died for parking. The rules for bringing them back, starting at the curb.
by Jeff Speck 2012
4.32
9k+ ratings
Capital City
by Samuel Stein • 2019
Gentrification is not a market outcome. It is policy, written by the real estate industry.
3.92
2k+
Capital City Summary
Capital City 88%
Gentrification is not a market outcome. It is policy, written by the real estate industry.
by Samuel Stein 2019
3.92
2k+ ratings
Tactical Urbanism
by Mike Lydon • 2014
How to hack your city with paint, planters, and pop-up parks, and prove change is possible now.
3.99
315
Tactical Urbanism Summary
Tactical Urbanism 88%
How to hack your city with paint, planters, and pop-up parks, and prove change is possible now.
by Mike Lydon 2014
3.99
315 ratings
Curbing Traffic
by Melissa Bruntlett • 2021
Dutch cities prove removing cars heals loneliness, restores childhood, and makes everyone richer.
4.38
633
Curbing Traffic Summary
Curbing Traffic 88%
Dutch cities prove removing cars heals loneliness, restores childhood, and makes everyone richer.
by Melissa Bruntlett 2021
4.38
633 ratings
How to Think Seriously About the Planet
by Roger Scruton • 2011
Why local loyalty, beauty, and tradition matter more for the planet than any global climate treaty.
3.87
446
How to Think Seriously About the Planet Summary
How to Think Seriously About the Planet 87%
Why local loyalty, beauty, and tradition matter more for the planet than any global climate treaty.
by Roger Scruton 2011
3.87
446 ratings
The Corruption of Economics
by Mason Gaffney • 1994
To defeat one reformer, economists rewrote their discipline and deleted land as a category.
4.38
16
The Corruption of Economics Summary
The Corruption of Economics 87%
To defeat one reformer, economists rewrote their discipline and deleted land as a category.
by Mason Gaffney 1994
4.38
16 ratings
Life After Cars
by Sarah Goodyear • 2025
The cost of car dependency is hidden in plain sight. What happens when we build for people instead?
4.26
1k+
Life After Cars Summary
Life After Cars 87%
The cost of car dependency is hidden in plain sight. What happens when we build for people instead?
by Sarah Goodyear 2025
4.26
1k+ ratings
On Power
by Robert A. Caro • 2017
How one man built a financial empire inside the government and became untouchable.
3.95
1k+
On Power Summary
On Power 87%
How one man built a financial empire inside the government and became untouchable.
by Robert A. Caro 2017
3.95
1k+ ratings
Road to Nowhere
by Paris Marx • 2022
The tech-driven transportation future is a dead end. The real fix: fewer cars, better transit.
4.16
643
Road to Nowhere Summary
Road to Nowhere 87%
The tech-driven transportation future is a dead end. The real fix: fewer cars, better transit.
by Paris Marx 2022
4.16
643 ratings
Progress and Poverty
by Henry George • 1879
Machines and wealth multiply, yet wages fall and poverty deepens. The root is under every city.
4.30
781
Progress and Poverty Summary
Progress and Poverty 87%
Machines and wealth multiply, yet wages fall and poverty deepens. The root is under every city.
by Henry George 1879
4.30
781 ratings
Streetfight
by Janette Sadik-Khan • 2016
Paint, data, and political nerve: beating the car-first status quo.
4.26
2k+
Streetfight Summary
Streetfight 87%
Paint, data, and political nerve: beating the car-first status quo.
by Janette Sadik-Khan 2016
4.26
2k+ ratings
The Just City
by Susan S. Fainstein • 2010
Stop asking if a city is growing. Start asking who it's growing for.
3.75
174
The Just City Summary
The Just City 87%
Stop asking if a city is growing. Start asking who it's growing for.
by Susan S. Fainstein 2010
3.75
174 ratings
The Mystery Of Capital
by Hernando de Soto • 2000
$9.3 trillion: what the world's poor already own and cannot borrow a dime against.
3.99
4k+
The Mystery Of Capital Summary
The Mystery Of Capital 87%
$9.3 trillion: what the world's poor already own and cannot borrow a dime against.
by Hernando de Soto 2000
3.99
4k+ ratings
Homelessness Is a Housing Problem
by Gregg Colburn • 2022
Homelessness rates don't track mental illness or poverty. They track rent and vacancy rates.
4.21
1k+
Homelessness Is a Housing Problem Summary
Homelessness Is a Housing Problem 87%
Homelessness rates don't track mental illness or poverty. They track rent and vacancy rates.
by Gregg Colburn 2022
4.21
1k+ ratings
Paint Your Town Red
by Matthew Brown • 2021
38 million to 111 million: the spending shift that rebuilt a town.
3.71
173
Paint Your Town Red Summary
Paint Your Town Red 87%
38 million to 111 million: the spending shift that rebuilt a town.
by Matthew Brown 2021
3.71
173 ratings
Urban Acupuncture
by Jaime Lerner • 2003
Fast, precise interventions where a city hurts trigger chain reactions no master plan ever could.
3.66
490
Urban Acupuncture Summary
Urban Acupuncture 87%
Fast, precise interventions where a city hurts trigger chain reactions no master plan ever could.
by Jaime Lerner 2003
3.66
490 ratings
Gaffs
by Rory Hearne • 2022
Why Ireland's housing crisis is not a market failure but a government strategy to enrich investors.
3.52
171
Gaffs Summary
Gaffs 87%
Why Ireland's housing crisis is not a market failure but a government strategy to enrich investors.
by Rory Hearne 2022
3.52
171 ratings
Harvest the Vote
by Jane Kleeb • 2020
Democrats lost rural America by walking away. A Nebraska organizer shows how to win it back.
3.82
214
Harvest the Vote Summary
Harvest the Vote 87%
Democrats lost rural America by walking away. A Nebraska organizer shows how to win it back.
by Jane Kleeb 2020
3.82
214 ratings
The Lies of the Land
by Steven Conn • 2023
Farmers and crisis don't define rural America. Military bases, chains, and suburbia do.
3.98
148
The Lies of the Land Summary
The Lies of the Land 87%
Farmers and crisis don't define rural America. Military bases, chains, and suburbia do.
by Steven Conn 2023
3.98
148 ratings
Public Citizens
by Paul Sabin • 2024
How liberal crusaders against big government paved the road for Reagan’s anti-government revolution.
3.82
199
Public Citizens Summary
Public Citizens 87%
How liberal crusaders against big government paved the road for Reagan’s anti-government revolution.
by Paul Sabin 2024
3.82
199 ratings
Palaces for the People
by Eric Klinenberg • 2018
Stronger than seawalls: the shared spaces that hold communities together when everything breaks.
3.97
5k+
Palaces for the People Summary
Palaces for the People 87%
Stronger than seawalls: the shared spaces that hold communities together when everything breaks.
by Eric Klinenberg 2018
3.97
5k+ ratings
The Power Broker
by Robert A. Caro • 1974
How one unelected man built New York, bulldozed entire communities, and answered to no one.
4.53
30k+
The Power Broker Summary
The Power Broker 87%
How one unelected man built New York, bulldozed entire communities, and answered to no one.
by Robert A. Caro 1974
4.53
30k+ ratings
Against the smart city
by Adam Greenfield • 2013
Smart cities sell efficiency but deliver surveillance. The real operating system is people.
3.96
132
Against the smart city Summary
Against the smart city 87%
Smart cities sell efficiency but deliver surveillance. The real operating system is people.
by Adam Greenfield 2013
3.96
132 ratings
Getting to Green
by Frederic C. Rich • 2016
No major environmental law has passed in 25 years. Here's why, and how to fix it.
4.02
106
Getting to Green Summary
Getting to Green 87%
No major environmental law has passed in 25 years. Here's why, and how to fix it.
by Frederic C. Rich 2016
4.02
106 ratings
The Unsettling of America
by Wendell Berry • 1977
America's farming crisis is really a crisis of character. The soil tells the story.
4.33
7k+
The Unsettling of America Summary
The Unsettling of America 87%
America's farming crisis is really a crisis of character. The soil tells the story.
by Wendell Berry 1977
4.33
7k+ ratings
The Smart Enough City
by Ben Green • 2019
Smart cities dress up political problems as engineering ones. The fix is governance, not gadgets.
4.12
208
The Smart Enough City Summary
The Smart Enough City 87%
Smart cities dress up political problems as engineering ones. The fix is governance, not gadgets.
by Ben Green 2019
4.12
208 ratings
Why Cities Lose
by Jonathan A. Rodden • 2019
The left's real problem isn't gerrymandering: its voters are packed into cities.
3.78
252
Why Cities Lose Summary
Why Cities Lose 87%
The left's real problem isn't gerrymandering: its voters are packed into cities.
by Jonathan A. Rodden 2019
3.78
252 ratings
Building and Dwelling
by Richard Sennett • 2018
A city is two things: physical form and lived experience. Ethical design puts the second first.
4.02
983
Building and Dwelling Summary
Building and Dwelling 87%
A city is two things: physical form and lived experience. Ethical design puts the second first.
by Richard Sennett 2018
4.02
983 ratings
Triumph of the City
by Edward L. Glaeser • 2011
Poverty flocks to cities because cities are the escape route. The economic case for density.
3.91
6k+
Triumph of the City Summary
Triumph of the City 87%
Poverty flocks to cities because cities are the escape route. The economic case for density.
by Edward L. Glaeser 2011
3.91
6k+ ratings
The People's Welfare
by William J. Novak • 1996
Before laissez-faire, 19th-century America ran on local rules: markets, morals, everything.
3.88
81
The People's Welfare Summary
The People's Welfare 87%
Before laissez-faire, 19th-century America ran on local rules: markets, morals, everything.
by William J. Novak 1996
3.88
81 ratings
Fiber
by Susan P. Crawford • 2018
Fiber is this century's electricity, and America skipped the wiring job.
3.87
159
Fiber Summary
Fiber 87%
Fiber is this century's electricity, and America skipped the wiring job.
by Susan P. Crawford 2018
3.87
159 ratings
The Social Life of Small Urban Spaces
by William H. Whyte • 1980
A decade of time-lapse footage on New York plazas upended every assumption about what draws a crowd.
4.33
927
The Social Life of Small Urban Spaces Summary
The Social Life of Small Urban Spaces 87%
A decade of time-lapse footage on New York plazas upended every assumption about what draws a crowd.
by William H. Whyte 1980
4.33
927 ratings
The Cost-Benefit Revolution
by Cass R. Sunstein • 2018
Government rules used to be about politics. Then Reagan made them about arithmetic.
3.62
116
The Cost-Benefit Revolution Summary
The Cost-Benefit Revolution 87%
Government rules used to be about politics. Then Reagan made them about arithmetic.
by Cass R. Sunstein 2018
3.62
116 ratings
Smart Cities
by Anthony M. Townsend • 2013
Corporations are selling smart cities. A movement of civic hackers has a better blueprint.
3.61
817
Smart Cities Summary
Smart Cities 87%
Corporations are selling smart cities. A movement of civic hackers has a better blueprint.
by Anthony M. Townsend 2013
3.61
817 ratings
Everything I Want To Do Is Illegal
by Joel Salatin • 2007
Government says raw milk and teenage farmhands are crimes. One sustainable farmer's legal war.
4.20
2k+
Everything I Want To Do Is Illegal Summary
Everything I Want To Do Is Illegal 87%
Government says raw milk and teenage farmhands are crimes. One sustainable farmer's legal war.
by Joel Salatin 2007
4.20
2k+ ratings
All That Is Solid
by Danny Dorling • 2014
Britain has a third more bedrooms than people. The housing disaster is engineered, not inevitable.
3.55
144
All That Is Solid Summary
All That Is Solid 86%
Britain has a third more bedrooms than people. The housing disaster is engineered, not inevitable.
by Danny Dorling 2014
3.55
144 ratings
Radical Cities
by Justin McGuirk • 2014
The slums and squatter towers of Latin America are the world's most daring urban experiments.
4.27
434
Radical Cities Summary
Radical Cities 86%
The slums and squatter towers of Latin America are the world's most daring urban experiments.
by Justin McGuirk 2014
4.27
434 ratings
How to Thrive in the Next Economy
by John Thackara • 2015
A design movement is ditching ‘less harm’ for an economy that restores soil, water, and community.
3.78
246
How to Thrive in the Next Economy Summary
How to Thrive in the Next Economy 86%
A design movement is ditching ‘less harm’ for an economy that restores soil, water, and community.
by John Thackara 2015
3.78
246 ratings
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