Great Good Place

The landmark survey that celebrates all the places where people hang out--and is helping to spawn their revival A New York Times Book Review Editors Choice "Third places " or "great good places " are the many public places where people can gather put aside the concerns of home and work (their first and second places) and hang out simply for the pleasures of good company and lively conversation. They are the heart of a communitys social vitality and the grassroots of a democracy. Author Ray Oldenburg portrays probes and promotes th4ese great good places--coffee houses cafes bookstores hair salons bars bistros and many others both past and present--and offers a vision for their revitalization. Eloquent and visionary this is a compelling argument for these settings of informal public life as essential for the health both of our communities and ourselves. And its message is being heard: Today entrepreneurs from Seattle to Florida are heeding the call of The Great Good Place--opening coffee houses bookstores community centers bars and other establishments and proudly acknowledging their indebtedness to this book.