Richard Florida Books

Who’s Your City?

How the creative economy is aking where to live the most important decision of your life

By Richard Florida

How the Creative Economy is Making the Place Where You Live the Most Important Decision of Your Life.

It’s a mantra of the age of globalization that where you live doesn’t matter: you can telecommute to your high-tech Silicon Valley job, a ski-slope in Idaho, a beach in Hawaii or a loft in Chicago; you can innovate from Shanghai or Bangalore.

According to Richard Florida, this is wrong. Place is not only important, it’s more important than ever.

Globalization is not flattening the world; on the contrary, the world is spiky. Place is becoming more relevant to the global economy and our individual lives. The choice of where to live, therefore, is not an arbitrary one. It is arguably the most important decision we make, as important as choosing a spouse or a career. In fact, place exerts powerful influence over the jobs and careers we have access to, the people we meet and our “mating markets” and our ability to lead happy and fulfilled lives.

Who’s Your City provides the first ever-rankings of cities by life-stage, rating the best places for singles, young families and empty-nesters. And it grounds its new ideas and data to provide an essential guide for the more than 40 million Americans of who move each year on how to choose where to live, and what those choices mean for their lives, happiness and communities.

 

“A great book”
John Sexton, New York University President, December 2009
“…read Richard Florida’s stuff — which the Obama-ites in the White House love — suggesting links between cities will create mega-hubs of economic power that are the future of the continental economy.”
Vancouver Sun, July 2009
“Of all of the books I’ve read by Richard Florida this has by far been the most compelling. Whether you’re a city lover, have a keen interest in our economy, or an arm-chair social scientist seeking to understand global trends then this book with give you much to ponder.”
The Urban Loft, June 2009
“Best Business Seller”
Financial Post, May 25 2009
“‘Who’s Your City?’ provides the first-ever rankings of cities by ‘life stage’, rating the best places for singles, young families and empty-nesters. The book shows readers how to choose where to live, and what those choices mean for their lives, happiness and communities.”
Times Union, May 3 2009
“4 our of 5 stars for this engagingly written book”
BBC Focus Magazine, May 2009
“Excellent book! From personal experience I agree that choice of where to live is the most important factor in one’s personal happiness.”
Rheba Estante, Examiner.com, March 26 2009
Planetizen includes Who’s Your City in their annual list of top ten planning books.
Planetizen, November 24, 2008
Named BNET Best Business Book of the Year
BNET, November 17, 2008
International Best Seller List
CEO Read, May 5th, 2008
Best Seller List
The Globe and Mail, April 12th, 2008
Best Seller List
Denver Post April 1st, 2008
‘Best Book of the Month’
Amazon March, 2008
Best Seller List
Montreal Gazette March 30, 2008
International Best Seller List
MacLeans Business Magazine March, 2008
Number 1 Best Seller (nonfiction)
Amazon (Canada), March 2008
Best Seller List
El Paso Times, March, 2008
“Passionate and thoughtful, this book is an indispensable guide to the way our cities really work. The spirit of Jane Jacobs lives on.”
The Financial Times
“Richard Florida is a phenomenon. An intellectual entrepreneur … there is no academic quite like him…”
The Globe and Mail
“Working with a number of collaborators, Florida musters an impressive array of evidence, tracking the experiences of a variety of demographics (twentys omethings, stroller couples, empty nesters) to tabulate which areas of the country benefit members of these groups. He concludes by offering a ten-step process. To his credit, Florida acknowledges the deleterious effects on cities of the living patterns he tracks, including gentrification and the disruption of older urban communities.”
Mike Newirth, Time Out Chicago / Issue 160 March 20–26, 2008
“These are intriguing trends and Florida is an authoritative and entertaining observer. He pulls together many of the things we see around us in high street and housing markets into an illuminating narrative of demography and urban and economic development.”
By John Gapper, The Financial Times March 19th 2008
“…the most entertaining chapter addresses America’s distribution of what psychologists call the ‘big five personality traits’”
Chronicles of Higher Education, March 20th 2008
“…this thought-provoking and seminal work will surely be studied, not only by scholars but more importantly by consumers pondering a move. Following Florida’s advice should aid them in that quest. Highly recommended for all libraries”.
Richard Drezen, Washington Post/NYC Bureau
“The world is not flat, and Richard Florida is the man to tell you why where you choose to live is more important than ever. Passionate and thoughtful, this book is an indispensable guide to the way our cities really work. The spirit of Jane Jacobs lives on.”
Tim Harford, Financial Times columnist and author of The Logic of Life.
“This book says all that I could never put into words about why certain cities sing to certain people. If I could talk like Florida writes, I wouldn’t have needed a campaign staff.”
John Hickenlooper, Mayor of the City of Denver
“Who’s Your City is another breakthrough idea by urban life genius Richard Florida. The power of place has everything to do with our success well beyond our own recognition. If you are contemplating a move or know someone who is, or are even vaguely interested in the idea of place as self, this book is a must read.”
Mario Batali, Chef and Restaurateur
“The world is not flat. Three-dimensional ‘place’ matters more than ever, not less than before. Richard Florida gets it exactly right—again—in Who’s Your City?. As a long time advocate of Florida’s position here, I will send it to colleagues by the score!”
Tom Peters, author of In Search of Excellence
“Richard Florida is a phenomenon. An intellectual entrepreneur…there is no academic quite like him..His first book crystallized a simple idea and introduced it, to general acceptance. …the book is an intriguing exploration of the global geography of the new urban world.”
Joe Berridge –The Globe and Mail, March 15, 2008
“…the author opens up a complex, under examined subject…”
PublishersWeekly, December 17 2007
“One of my all-time favorite working life books is Richard Florida’s 2002 bestseller The Rise of the Creative Class. Florida—he of the no collar workforce and Bohemian-Gay housing index fame (down, Stephen Colbert, down!)—is one of the smartest working life observers in the country. Over and over again, with great intellectual elegance, he sets it all up and then spins it forward. So it is with great glee that I announce the latest in Florida’s working life oeuvre, a new book due out from publisher Basic in March called Who’s Your City? If you think working remotely means where you live—your place—doesn’t matter anymore, Florida correctly shows us—with his trademark data and analysis—why you’re dead wrong. The books is a superb treatise on the location paradox: the idea that as the world becomes more mobile, the more decisive location becomes. At first it seems paradoxical. Since we can work remotely, place should hardly matter, right? The world if flat. Distance is dead. But Florida shows how, in the hyper wireless world, place is exerting an even more powerful influence on happiness than ever before due to the power of agglomeration, the force of clustering and the growth of smart spots. Choosing one’s scene is becoming as important as choosing one’s spouse and career, Florida argues.We learn why San Francisco is the best city for young singles; why Washington D.C. is the best place to raise kids; and why New York City is one of the top spots for retirees. Something to look forward to!”
Business Week, January 2, 2008
Richard Florida Does It Again Michelle Conlin
From the bestselling author of “The Rise of the Creative Class” comes a brilliant new book on the surprising importance of place. “Who’s Your City?” offers the first available city rankings by life-stage, rating the best places for singles, families, and empty-nesters to reside.author:
CEO Read, March 2008
“Who’s Your City? is well-documented with statistics, maps and charts for the scholarly. But Florida’s down-to-earth writing and 10-step plan for choosing the place that fits best will help make deciding where to settle a most enjoyable endeavor.”
Review by Linda Stankard, Bookpage, March 2008
“…it wasn’t till I read “Who’s Your City,” the new book by Richard Florida, that I grasped the global implications of what’s going on in the…real estate market.”
Carol Lloyd, San Francisco Chronicle, March 7 2008
”…he does present an impressive amount of research in arguing that place is key to personal happiness and that people have the ability to choose the place that’s right for them.”
Peter Hadekel is a business columnist for The Gazette. March 15th 2008
“…Florida’s real contribution here is in providing something of a manual for successful urbanism.”
Reviewed by Michael Dudley, Winnipeg Free Press. March 16th 2008
“Florida’s thesis makes a lot of sense…his easy-to-grasp concepts will increase your understanding of where you live, why it matters and what you can do to make your community better.”
“Florida’s work is based on extensive research, including a fascinating new study … ”
Jon Talton, Seattle Times, April 13th, 2008
“…the writer is the thought-provoking intellectual Richard Florida — who claims in his new book, “Who’s Your City?,” that the selection of where to live ranks as life’s most important decision…”
Patrick S. Duffy, Los Angeles Times, April 13th, 2008
“essential reading for the real estate industry in understanding how people are making decisions about where to live and why… Who’s Your City? is chocked full of meaty information – all backed by tables, graphs, survey results, and opinion polls. ”
“A timely and entertaining portrait of urban and economic and demographic trends.”
Winnipeg Free Press
“Though Florida writes with almost boundless optimism about the advantages of clustering, he also touches on the darker side of his theory of globalization, which may be the most important thing to draw from
The Associated Press
“Florida goes a step further than [Jane] Jacobs, elevating the realm of culture to an issue of central importance….Employing classic Field of Dreams logic, Florida believes that if you invest in culture, the creatives will come.”
The Tyee
“There is a book out that I highly recommend reading. It’s called Who’s Your City?…”
Colin Cowherd, ESPN Radio
7 Must-Read Books About Cities
Brain Pickings Weekly, August 2011
Who's Your City Features and Reviews

St. Louis Commerce Magazine : Book Review Who’s Your City?

Richard Florida presents a potent argument for why a few cities are emerging as extremely successful economic powerhouses, while most are in decline. Florida argues that we are now able to choose a place to live from cities around the country and all one needs to do is match a city’s personality and social possibilities with our individual needs and preferences also arguing that these needs can change with
different stages — early career, raising a family and retirement — of life.

admin
January 21, 2009
CitiesWho's Your City News Articles

Business Insider : These Are The Top-Ranked US Cities For Starting A Business

Richard Florida’s “Who’s Your City?” is a cool book that takes a look at the impact of where you live on your professional and social opportunities. Florida conducted research to understand what places attract entrepreneurial minds, how they do it, and its affect on the regions these places inhabit. He also takes a look at what cities represent the best opportunities to find a mate, start a family, be an empty nester, and retire.

admin
October 4, 2011
Who's Your City News Articles

Jackson Free Press : [Stauffer] A 21st Century Boom Town?

In his latest book, “Who’s Your City?.” Florida expands on the work that he’s done in previous books to speak to two audiences. First, the book gives cities a sense of what they need to do to attract and keep the best and the brightest. Second, the book gives guidance to individuals trying to make the very important choice of where they want to live. How does Jackson rank?

admin
September 16, 2009
Who's Your City News Articles

E-Commerce News : Going Global From Rural America

The flattening of the world increasingly makes it possible for anyone to do business from anywhere, as author Thomas Friedman has pointed out. However, that doesn’t mean place is irrelevant to business. In fact, it matters more than ever, according to author Richard Florida. At the intersection of Opportunity and Culture, the concepts of Friedman and Florida collide.

admin
July 29, 2009
Who's Your City Creative Class Communities

Dayton Daily News : Dayton’s young, restless get creative

If Dayton wanted to impress somebody, it could do worse than Richard Florida.

Recently, he gave an interview in which he said:
“I was just in Cincinnati and in Dayton, another city I love. They’re historical centers of innovation … from steel innovation to aluminum innovation, to electronics, to the Wright brothers, to the car. This is one of the greatest innovative and entrepreneurial centers in the world.

“They have probably one of the greatest clusters of universities in the history of the planet. They’re producing phenomenal talent, but, unfortunately, that talent leaves. …

admin
April 9, 2008
AustraliaCreative ClassWho's Your City Creative Class Communities

Business Matters Magazine: Attracting Creative Talent to Noosa

Richard Florida believes creative people come in all colours and that they are the key to the new economy. If he didn’t already have a catchy name, Richard Florida could easily be dubbed Mr. T. His celebrated theory of economic prosperity is based on Four T’s. And it was his T for Tolerance that landed the personable American professor in Capital T Trouble when he flew into Noosa last November and media coverage played the gay card.

admin
March 11, 2008

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Also available

The Rise of the Creative Class (978-0-465-02477-3)