This collection of 79 oral histories offers a remarkable window into public housing's past in Chicago through the voices of its former residents and staff. Public housing was once a paradise of good housing, positive community, and careful management--a past that offers a blueprint for public housing's future. As John Hope Franklin suggested, Fuerst has given us something about which to ponder quite seriously.

Fuerst offers a collection of 79 oral histories of former public housing residents and staff in Chicago. The voices remember a time between 1938 and 1960 when public...