Borderland

This fascinating prehistory of the American Suburb traces its evolution from the mid-1800s to the onset of World War II. Using a rich array of contemporary written and pictorial sources, prize-winning historian John R. Stilgoe guides us through the early suburbs of Manhattan, Boston, Chicago, and other cities, showing us not only how they looked but what life was like for the men and women who lived there. In chronicling this great exodus and its impacton culture, women architecture, and myriad other aspects of American societyStilgoe displays with, scholarship, and insight, as well as delight in searching out meanings in his sourcesThe book itself is handsome and well illustrated, blessed with a lively text, saturated with evocative and vivid detail.David Slovic, Philadelphia Inquirer Stilgoes research is thorough, his approach original and engaging, and his book a delight to read, filled with illustrationspictorial and verbalthat help illustrate the phenomenon more clearly and deeply.Merle Rubin, Christians Science Monitor A provocative look at American cultureBorderland makes serious social history accessible and engaging.Caryn James, New York Times Borderland offers a fresh perspective on the zone between rural space and urban residential rings, and it challenges our assumptions about what constitutes a good life.Kenneth Jackson, Progressive Architecture John R. Stilgoe is the Robert & Lois Orchard Professor in the History of Landscape at Harvard University. He is also the author of Common Landscape of American, 1580 to 1845 and Metropolitan Corridor. Railroads and the American Scene.