Reviews and Comments

This book goes for coverage rather than depth, but that's balanced by the book recommendations he includes in the main text of each chapter. I got lost in the alphabet soup of community organizations and coalitions and public agencies but the "plot" moves from issue to issue steadily enough that it wasn't necessary to flip back and say "who was that, again?" (Vrabel even titles one chapter 'The Illusion of Inclusion and Assault by Acronyms'!)

Strengths of the book include its organization into fairly short and readable chapters that deal with distinct issues (highways, school busing, housing, welfare, and others) that are nonetheless chronological up through the end of Mayor Menino's reign. The style is closer to a newspaper than an academic history book, yet the analysis is nuanced despite the brevity. For example, it's impossible to write a non-controversial account of the busing crisis, but this book does about as well as possible by focusing on the methods of the competing groups and leaders. (Louise Hicks and Judge Garrity come off the worst, which is as it should be, in my opinion.) I especially like that he doesn't neglect recent history and the present (as of 2014). The epilogue leans a bit much into "what's wrong with these kids today - the '60s and '70s were the golden age" angle. It doesn't account for how Boston's current inequality and stratification are part of a relentless global trend - that is, he acknowledges Boston's severe wealth inequality, but as if it's a local flaw.

Overall, this is an essential book of local history that is biased in the right way - in favor of local engagement and protest by real residents - and objective in the right way - by honestly assessing failures, successes, and alternatives that could have been tried.