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Shop nowCities and the Wealth of Nations
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Learn moreIn this eye-opening work of economic theory, Jane Jacobs argues that it is cities—not nations—that are the drivers of wealth. Challenging centuries of economic orthodoxy, in Cities and the Wealth of Nations the beloved author contends that healthy cities are constantly evolving to replace imported goods with locally produced alternatives, spurring a cycle of vibrant economic growth. Intelligently argued and drawing on examples from around the world and across the ages, here Jacobs radically changes the way we view our cities—and our entire economy.
Jane Jacobs (1916–2006) was a writer and activist who championed new approaches to urban planning for more than forty years. Her 1961 treatise The Death and Life of Great American Cities became perhaps the most influential American text about the inner workings and failings of cities, inspiring generations of urban planners and activists. Her efforts to stop the building of downtown expressways and protect local neighborhoods invigorated community-based urban activism and helped end Parks Commissioner Robert Moses’ reign of power in New York City.
Bernadette Dunne is the winner of more than a dozen AudioFile Earphones Awards and has twice been nominated for the prestigious Audie Award. She studied at the Royal National Theatre in London and the Studio Theater in Washington, DC, and has appeared at the Kennedy Center and off Broadway.
Reviews
“Not only comprehensible but entertaining…Like Mrs. Jacobs’s other books, it offers a concrete approach to an abstract and elusive subject. That, all by itself, makes for an intoxicating experience.”
“Not only comprehensible but entertaining…It offers a concrete approach to an abstract and elusive subject.”
“Learned, iconoclastic, and exciting…Jacobs’s diagnosis of the decay of cities in an increasingly integrated world economy is on the mark.”
“Learned, iconoclastic, and exciting.”
“Jacobs’s book is inspired, idiosyncratic, and personal…It is written with verve and humor; for a work of embattled theory, it is wonderfully concrete, and its leaps are breathtaking.”
“Jacobs’s book is inspired, idiosyncratic, and personal…Written with verve and humor.”
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