Portland's Good Life

In this marvelous book, both study and story, Bruce Stephenson takes us to two cities that are somewhat opposites, yet each in its own way offers lessons for smart living. Drawing on his intimate relationship with them, he points insightfully toward a new age of thoughtful urbanism that could be—should be—our future.

-- Jack E. Davis, University of Florida; Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Gulf: The Making of an American Sea

Bruce Stephenson steps us into the good life in this remarkable, plausible portrait of America’s most climate-change aware city. He makes a convincing case that Portland is the city to emulate—full of private citizens devoted to the public good, making daily demonstrations of the blessings of city life. This is an essential message to hear in a society consumed by pandemic fears and false claims about urban decline.

-- Emily Talen, University of Chicago

Bruce Stephenson’s book is a broadly conceived and mature work by a thoughtful observer of urban life about how we can create more sustainable cities. But more than that, it is a love letter to livable places and a plea for better communities. Most importantly, Stephenson encourages us to love our fellow citizens and aspire to Aristotle’s ‘good life’ vs. the modern, commercial ‘goods life’—an urgent message in a time of uncertainty for our cities and our planet.

-- Peter Hendee Brown, University of Minne