Atlanta Urbanist Book Group

A Better Atlanta, One Book at a Time

Our mission at the Atlanta Urbanist Book Group is to introduce new ideas to Urban Atlanta by reading recent books about cities, identifying the ideas we think would work in Atlanta, and offering civic leaders a guide to these ideas.

We define “urbanism” broadly. We are reading books about transportation, land use, housing, public safety, government reform, neighborhoods, social infrastructure, education, economic development, regionalism, diversity, politics, arts and culture, volunteerism, and more. 

Our aim isn’t to review books but to show how their ideas apply to Atlanta today and suggest ways of moving from good ideas to good actions. 

Interested? Like to join us for a discussion? Click here to sign up for our email notices about books and meeting dates.

You can also subscribe to our calendar of events on Google. Click this link to have our meetings connected to your phone’s calendar and updated two or three months in advance. You’ll never have to wonder when the Atlanta Urbanist Book Group meets next.

Next Book: Walkable City: How Downtown Can Save America, One Step at a Time

May 7, 2025

 This is a book about why cities should create and grow walkable places, and how it can be done. Walkable downtowns and neighborhoods, the book argues, are the key to healthy, prosperous, affordable and appealing cities, and make other urbanist goals, like transit, mixed uses, bike lanes and density possible.

Jeff Speck is a city planner who specializes in walkable places.

We will look for lessons about how we can create walkable downtowns and neighborhoods in Urban Atlanta.