One of the best books I read in my life has been Ray Oldenburg’s The Great Good Place. The book is a treatise on the value of the third place — somewhere people can go that is not centered on consumerism and is neither work or home. Think cafes in Europe, pedestrian malls, libraries, museums, even the internet.
Hadley Dyer and Marc Ngui, a pair of Canadians, have taken this idea and made it accessible to a younger audience. Watch This Space: Defending, Designing, and Sharing Public Spaces is a non-fiction, fast-paced, and engaging read directed at teenagers that seeks to highlight how important it is to have safe spaces in the world where teens can interact with one another and with all members of society. The book is colorful and quick to connect to, and it serves a great purpose in defining what a public space is and why it is important for teenagers to care about these things.
A quick overview of the history and intricacies of designing public spaces was quite interesting: when I was a teenager, there weren’t a lot of mall restrictions, for example, but the authors highlight how many malls have implemented rules meant to keep teenagers out or from congregating. Dyer and Ngui repeat throughout, though, that malls AREN’T public spaces; rather, they serve as an example of what a public space should be for teenagers: appealing, spacious, well-lit, and inviting to partake in any number of safe activities.
In addition to defining and illustrating the history of public spaces, this book gives teenagers a list of HOW to get involved with their communities. There is a do-it-yourself activity in designing a space, as well as a list of places where teenage input is valued (including things like the public library’s teen advisory board).
Be aware, though, there is a definite bias in this book, much like there is in Oldenburg’s book, and that bias is against the American life style. That’s not to say there is a bashing of it in any way, but as a reader I was quick to sense that there was the belief that the American mode was inadequate and there was little work in improving it. I don’t necessarily believe that, though some of the points made were valid — a lot is also overlooked in the progress America has been making in developing public spaces in a suburban-dominated country.
Watch This Space is a book that would be a fantastic book discussion choice. It can be read quickly and discussed in one session. I think teens would get easily fired up about this and could easily become motivated to get involved in their worlds. A good book talker can sell this one without problem. I think there is a real opportunity to pique the interest of socially conscious teens who may be coming back asking for some of the titles of books by well-known sociologists quoted throughout. The book is a worthy title for adults to read, too, especially those who work with teens or think that teens are often forgotten about in our world — you, too, may be motivated to be their advocates.
