The Rise of the Creative Class: And How It's Transforming Work, Leisure, Community and Everyday Life |
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The Rise of the Creative Class: And How It's Transforming Work, Leisure, Community and Everyday Life
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by Richard Florida
Sales Rank: 5211
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List Price: $16.95
$11.53
At Amazon
on 10-30-2008.
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Features
Cover Type: Paperback with 434 pages
Published by: Basic Books December 23, 2003
Written in: English
ISBN 10 Number: 0465024777
ISBN 13 Number: 978-0465024773
Book Dimensions:
8 x 5.4 x 1.3 inches
Weighs: 13.4 ounces
From Booklist
Florida, an academic whose field is regional economic development, explains the rise of a new social class that he labels the creative class. Members include scientists, engineers, architects, educators, writers, artists, and entertainers. He defines this class as those whose economic function is to create new ideas, new technology, and new creative content. In general this group shares common characteristics, such as creativity, individuality, diversity, and merit. The author estimates that this group has 38 million members, constitutes more than thirty percent of the U.S. workforce, and profoundly influences work and lifestyle issues. The purpose of this book is to examine how and why we value creativity more highly than ever and cultivate it more intensely. He concludes that it is time for the creative class to grow up--boomers and Xers, liberals and conservatives, urbanites and suburbanites--and evolve from an amorphous group of self-directed while high-achieving individuals into a responsible, more cohesive group interested in the common good. Mary Whaley
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Product Review
"A pioneering cartographer of talent." -- Fast Company
"An intellectual tour de force, scholarly yet colorfully written." -- Globe and Mail (Toronto)
"Florida draws a vivid picture of what it takes to make a great 21st-century city." -- Denver Post
Reader Reviews
This review is from: The Rise of the Creative Class: And How It's Transforming Work, Leisure, Community and Everyday Life (Hardcover)
Richard Florida's study began with a rather straightforward premise: what characterizes the cities and regions that are economically successful today? His conclusions are rather controversial, but, based on the statistical evidence he presents (as well as my own experience), I found them highly convincing. The liveliest economies, he finds, are in regions characterized by the 3 T's -- talent, technology, and tolerance. The implications are profound, to wit: 1. Conventional wisdom holds that, to boost an area's economy, it's necessary to attract large companies and thus create jobs. In fact, companies locate where the talent is; all the tax breaks in the world won't bring a large company to your area if they can't find the quality of employees they want there. Often, too, the talent itself will generate new companies and create jobs that way. 2. Urban planners assume that, to attract talent/jobs, what's important is to provide infrastructure: sports stadiums, freeways, shopping centers, etc. In fact, creative people prefer authenticity -- so making your city just like everyplace else is a sure way to kill its attractiveness. 3. The often-misunderstood "gay index" doesn't mean that gay people are more creative, or that attracting gays to a community will ipso facto boost its economy. Creative people tend to prefer gay-friendly communities because they're perceived as tolerant of anyone who isn't "mainstream"; a city that's run by a conservative good-ole-boys network isn't a good place to try to start a business unless you're one of the good ole boys. The book is primarily descriptive and analytical, rather than prescriptive. But I feel it's immensely valuable for pointing out that much of the conventional wisdom about economic development and community planning is just plain wrong, and suggesting alternative approaches that have a greater chance of succeeding. And I'm amused (and bemused) by the reviewers who sneered that this book propounds an elitist, liberal, contempt-for-the-working-masses view of American society. To me, the book is almost TOO descriptive: didn't these reviewers read the many statistical tables and the lengthy analyses that the author provides? Fact: The most economically successful cities and regions have these characteristics. That isn't propaganda; it's the way things work.
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The Rise of the Creative Class: And How It's Transforming Work, Leisure, Community and Everyday Life
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Price: $11.53
Updated on 10-30-2008.
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