Palaces for the People: How To Build a More Equal and United Society - Softcover

"This wonderful book shows us how democracies thrive" (Steven Levitsky & Daniel Ziblatt, authors of How Democracies Die)

"Fantastic ... both idealistic and, in its myriad examples, pragmatic, and delightfully readable" (Rebecca Solnit, author of Men Explain Things to Me)

"This book is full of hope, which is all the more striking because Klinenberg is a realist. He is a major social thinker, and this is a beautifully written, major book" (Richard Sennett, author of The Craftsman)

"An important book for our difficult age. In very unequal societies, where the social fabric has been torn apart, it is vitally important to bring people together. Eric Klinenberg shows us how this can be done" (Kate Pickett, co-author of The Spirit Level and The Inner Level)

"Klinenberg’s observations hold as true for Brexit Britain as they do for Trump’s America ... In ripping out our social infrastructure, we are outraging a wisdom that goes back centuries and spans countries ... Our people deserve palaces" Aditya Chakrabortty"

How can we bring people together? In Palaces for the People Professor Eric Klinenberg presents a simple but transformative idea for health, happiness, safety and healing our divided, unequal society.

Too often we take for granted and neglect our libraries, parks, markets, schools, playgrounds, gardens and communal spaces, but decades of research now shows that these places can have an extraordinary effect on our health and wellbeing and that of society as a whole. Why? Because wherever people cross paths and linger, wherever we gather informally, strike up a conversation and get to know one another, relationships blossom and communities emerge – and where communities are strong, people are safer and healthier, crime drops and commerce thrives, and peace, tolerance and stability take root.

Through uplifting human stories, Palaces for the People shows that properly designing and maintaining this ‘social infrastructure’ is our single best strategy for a more equal and united society.