"Here is one of the great stories in American urban history told by a great historian. In 1949, Boston was 'a hopeless backwater,' its skyline stunted, and its municipal government a national disgrace; by 1970 a 'New Boston' had been created, with new office buildings, new developments, and new economic dynamism. Thomas H. O'Connor, the dean of Boston historians, brings to this tale of transformation rich learning, intimate familiarity with his subject, and a lucid sometimes witty pen." – Jack Beatty, author of The Rascal King: The Life and Times of James Michael Curley 1874-1958 and Senior Editor, Atlantic Monthly