This post originally appeared on Orphan Road.
I happen to own a copy of Jane Jacobs The Death and Life of Great American Cities. I was several wonderful chapters in when I lost it, and only recently found it again (it was zipped away in the pocket of my suitcase). As I work through the other 4 books I’ve started, it has sat on a shelf. Even the few chapters I read expanded my understanding of what makes a great neighborhood.
But I’ve found a great reason to pick it back up: the City Builder Book Club. The Center for Urban Projects, the same group that created The Gondola Project, is starting up an online book club specifically for those of us that wish to understand cities in greater depth. And just my luck: their first book is The Death and Life of Great American Cities. If you’re a reader here I highly recommend signing up and reading along.