Happy City: Transforming Our Lives Through Urban Design

Finalist for the Hilary Weston Writers’ Trust Prize for Nonfiction"Such an instructive book." —Toronto Star "Montgomery is a talented raconteur. . . . In Happy City, the prose swings when he’s plunging us into the moment." —National Post "Montgomery should be praised for both the breadth of his research as well the virtues of most everything he argues." —The Globe and Mail "A copy of Charles Montgomery’s Happy City sits on newly elected Toronto mayor John Tory's desk. Here’s hoping he and every major reads it. The book is a builder’s guide to a modern and livable urban environment. . . . [containing] Malcolm Gladwell-worthy data mining." —John Moore of Moore in the Mornings (via National Post)“Lively and accessible. . . . In Montgomery’s hands, urban design proves not only exciting, but integral to our future.” ―Publishers Weekly“Happy City is not only readable but stimulating. It raises issues most of us have avoided for too long. Do we live in neighbourhoods that make us happy? That is not a silly question. Montgomery encourages us to ask it without embarrassment, and to think intelligently about the answer.” —The New York Times“A brilliant, entertaining and vital book. Montgomery deftly leads us from our misplaced focus on money, cars and stuff to consider what makes us truly happy. Then everything changes - the way we live, work and play in humanity's major habitat, the city.”—David Suzuki“The place we live is key to our happiness. Charles Montgomery helps us understand why and provides a guidebook for living a happier, more fulfilling and meaningful life.” —Richard Florida, University of Toronto and NYU professor and author of The Rise of the Creative Class.“A wonderful book . . . very thought provoking and inspiring.” —Metro Morning