Book Talk: Homes for Living

EventIn Person

In Partnership with Housing Works

On Wednesday, March 19 from 6-8 PM, join us for another Municipal Art Society + Housing Works book talk! Author Jonathan Tarleton will discuss his new book, Homes for Living, in conversation with Cassim Shepard, Distinguished Lecturer of Architecture and Urban Studies, Spitzer School of Architecture, City College, City University of New York. Cassim will chat with Jonathan about the book and his process as a writer, urban planner, and oral historian.

Homes for Living is “a tale of 2 NYC affordable housing co-ops’ struggle over privatization, public goods, and the future of American housing” (Beacon Press). Come by on March 19 to hear this great pair talk about housing in New York City, and more.

Doors at 6 PM, event at 6:15 PM. Books will be available for purchase and signing. Questions? Email us at events@mas.org.

The event is SOLD OUT, but walk-ins are always welcome at Housing Works.

About the Book

The American Dream of homeownership is becoming an American Delusion. As renters seek an escape from record-breaking rent hikes, first-time buyers find that skyrocketing interest rates and historically low inventory leave them with scant options for an affordable place to live. With home valued more than ever as a commodity, even social housing programs meant to insulate families from cut-throat markets are under threat—sometimes by residents themselves.

In Homes for Living, urban planner and oral historian Jonathan Tarleton introduces readers to 2 social housing co-ops in Brooklyn and Manhattan. Longtime residents of St. James Towers and Southbridge Towers lock horns over whether to maintain the rules that have kept their homes affordable for decades or to cash out at great personal profit, thereby denying future generations the same opportunity to build thriving communities rooted in mutual care.

With a deft hand for mapping personal histories atop the greater housing crisis, Tarleton explores housing as a public good, movements for tenant rights and Indigenous sovereignty, and questions of race and class to lay bare competing visions of what ownership means, what homes are for, and what neighbors owe each other. Learn more about the book >

Wednesday, March 19
6:00 PM — 8:00 PM

Housing Works Bookstore
126 Crosby Street
New York, NY 10012

Tickets:
Free!

Attend
  • Praise for "Homes for Living: The Fight for Social Housing and a New American Commons" by Jonathan Tarleton. Credit: Beacon Press.
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  • Jonathan Tarleton and Cassim Shepard.
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Meet the Speakers

Jonathan Tarleton, Featured Writer
Jonathan Tarleton is a writer, urban planner, and oral historian. He previously served as the chief researcher on Nonstop Metropolis: A New York City Atlas and as the editor in chief of the online magazine Urban Omnibus. His essays have appeared in Orion, Jacobin, Hell Gate, Dirt, and beyond.

Cassim Shepard, Moderator
Cassim Shepard is distinguished lecturer in architecture and urban studies at City College, City University of New York. Trained as an urban planner, geographer, and documentary filmmaker, he writes and makes films about cities and places, with a particular emphasis on housing and civic life. His film and video work has been exhibited at the Venice Architecture Biennale, the Museum of the City of New York, the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum, the United Nations, Pavillon de l’Arsenale in Paris, and the African Centre for Cities in Cape Town. Shepard’s writing has appeared in Places Journal, Next City, Strangers’ Guide, Domus, and Public Culture, among other publications. He was founding editor-in-chief of Urban Omnibus, an online publication of the Architectural League of New York, which inspired his first book, Citymakers: The Culture and Craft of Practical Urbanism. His current book project traces an intellectual history of incremental or “self-help” approaches to housing for vulnerable populations around the world.