The Resilience of Our Rural Towns and What It Means for Our Country
by Elizabeth Currid-Halkett
Critics' Opinion:
Readers' rating:
Published Jun 2023
432 pages
Genre: History, Current Affairs and Religion
Publication Information
How small-town America's surprising success reshapes our understanding of the nation's urban-rural divide.
The United States today appears to be deeply divided. Journalists have painted a portrait of an enraged America, where poor, conservative small towns are at war with affluent, progressive cities. In fact, the nation is less divided by geography than many think.
In The Overlooked Americans, public policy expert Elizabeth Currid-Halkett breaks through stereotypes about rural America. She traces how small towns are doing as well as, or better than, cities by many measures. She also shows how rural and urban Americans share core values, from opposing racism and upholding environmentalism to believing in democracy. When we focus too heavily on the far-right fringe, we overlook the millions of rural Americans who are content with their lives.
A rigorous debunking of the conventional wisdom about America's urban-rural divide, The Overlooked Americans offers an urgent call for Americans to reconnect with one another.
"A hopeful and provocative analysis bound to raise discussion." —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"Idealistic yet well-grounded, this is a refreshing antidote to doom and gloom prognostications of where America is headed." —Publishers Weekly
"This timely book belies the narrative of a nation sharply polarized across an urban-rural divide. Instead, Elizabeth Currid-Halkett shows that Americans aren't nearly as divided by geography as the punditry and media would have us believe. Urban, suburban, and rural Americans have more in common than we think. A modern-day version of Michael Harrington's classic, The Other America, this moving book is essential reading for all who care about the future of our country and its people." —Richard Florida, author of The New Urban Crisis
"Currid-Halkett has long been a formidable observer of cultural trends, but with The Overlooked Americans, she deftly combines qualitative and quantitative research to create a riveting, clear-eyed, and often-surprising portrait of small-town America." —Sloane Crosley, author of Cult Classic
This information about The Overlooked Americans was first featured
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Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Elizabeth Currid-Halkett is the James Irvine Chair in Urban and Regional Planning and professor of public policy at the University of Southern California. She holds the Kluge Chair in Modern Culture at the Library of Congress, and her research has been featured in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Economist, and New Yorker. The author of three previous books, she lives in Los Angeles, California.
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