"America’s downtowns, if the daily papers and the local chambers of commerce are to be believed, are tottering on the brink of destruction once again. . . . Yet Alison Isenberg holds out a ray of hope in Downtown America. Her endlessly fascinating book argues that Main Street has always been an idealized dreamscape, a kind of Shangri-La of perfect civic bliss that never did quite measure up to its own image."

Karal Ann Marling | Chicago Tribune Books

"This is a book that I will be recommending and referring to often in the years to come."

Francis Morrone | New York Sun

"With a social historian’s consciousness, [Isenberg] appropriately analyzes the roles played by race, class, gender, and age in shaping cityscapes. Isenberg’s ample use of illustrations is exemplary as is her inclusion of representative cities throughout the North and South. . . . A welcome contribution to all collections addressing aspects of 20th-century urbanization, community relations, and real estate history."

Library Journal

"Now that big cities are again big destinations—albeit for hipsters and empty-nesters more than the middle class—this cultural history of the images of "downtown" in the 20th century is timely. There’s an entire chapter devoted to those idealized Main Street postcards that show cities trying to look grown-up, for instance, and another on the historic preservation craze born in part at Ghiradelli Square. Ultimately, Isenberg suggests the only constant is evolution: If prosperous downtowns today resemble lifestyle zones of wine bars and chain stores, it’s because that’s what people want—no matter what they say."

San Francisco Chronicle Book Review

"Inventive in its themes and imaginative in its selection of evidence, Downtown America is a perceptive and fascinating study of the never-ending adaptation of downtown retailing in the 20th century. . . . Well written and amply illustrated, this is an outstanding book."

R. A. Beauregard | Choice

“Isenberg . . . argues against idealizing downtown as a democratic mecca or framing its history in terms of a rise and fall. . . . As this book insists, downtown is what people struggle to make of it: it’s as much a state of mind as a physical place.”

Financial Times

"This is likely the definitive book on America’s downtowns. . . . It is not yet available in paperback, but when it does become available it should be a must read for anyone concerned with charting a new future for San Francisco and urban America."

Randy Shaw | Beyond Chron (SF)

"Downtown America is not only an interesting look at the history of commercial interests in urban business districts, but in the people and issues surrounding commerce and urban investment--gender and race, economic failure and revitalization. Scholars of women’s history, material culture, and urban history will find this book a valuable contribution to their reading lists."

LaDale C. Winling | Journal of Social History

"This study opens a doorway of intellectual curiosity for many who are interested in urban. intellectual, cultural, and social history. It is also highly recommended for urban planners, sociologists, economists, and the general reader. This examination greatly contributes to our understanding of the centrality of the city as a distinct place. . . . A ’must read’ for all who are intreested in urban change."

Cornelia F. Sexauer | The Historian

"A must read for students of the urban scene. . . . The book’s liberally annotated bibliography is a goldmine for those seeking further information on the forces shaping downtown."

David T. Stephens | Pennsylvania Geographer

"Isenberg’s sophisticated analysis will forever alter our view of Main Street as it highlights the people who repeatedly created and contested the ideals it represented. . . . Its contribution lies not only in what it reveals to us about the past, but what it can tell us about the present and future."

Tanya Gogan | Enterprise and Society