A change is coming, and it has the potential to turn your hometown upside down. Are you ready for it? In The Great Inversion and the Future of the American City, author Alan Ehrenhalt notes that the current and rising generations of homeowners are looking for elements of downtown living in their communities — amenities like cafés, gourmet food shops, and public transit — all within steps of their front door. To meet this growing demand, city planners will have to create these communities from scratch, or risk losing these residents to nearby cities or urbanized suburbs.

As you read The Great Inversion and the Future of the American City, you’ll encounter urban elements that affect downtown viability in ways you never expected. For example, did you know that row house blocks are an impediment to urbanization? An individual house is easy to abandon (unlike a fifty-unit apartment building), but the block can’t be renovated until all the houses are empty. You may have seen these “stalled” blocks in Philadelphia or Baltimore.

Parochialism, manifesting as an inclination to shop and live within one’s neighborhood, may also slow down the development of prized downtowns. When local politicians feel pressure to support their constituents’ neighborhood’s priorities over the city’s as a whole, it can be difficult to create a downtown desirable to retailer headquarters. Moreover, distrust of outsiders discourages the settlement of immigrants who have proven, time and time again, to bring the revitalizing retail force that can jumpstart a neighborhood.

Interested yet? The Great Inversion and the Future of the American City is more than an assemblage of fun case studies; it’s also a warning. As a member of your community, you have a say in whether or not your local planners and politicians are prepared for the demographic change that’s coming our way. Alan Ehrenhalt’s interesting, informative book makes sure you know what a sound plan looks like.