LAWRENCE LANAHAN

“Look to be educated and enlightened about the realities that define the shape of America’s cities…Lanahan shows how the denial of safe, decent housing adds up to the denial of hope. He builds his case so methodically that it can’t be dismissed…His thorough reporting disrobes hypocrisy and leaves decades of political excuses flailing.” 
—Jacqui Banaszynski, Star Tribune

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“A meticulous and affecting study, a precious resource for readers interested in urban politics, race, and city life.”
—Booklist

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“A solid choice for those who study urban race relations.”
—Caryn Nichter, Library Journal

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“Lawrence Lanahan is a good storyteller…I could hardly put the book down…The main weakness in The Lines Between Us is that there is almost no editorializing or summarizing…when Lanahan winds up for the punch he never throws it hard enough.”

—Matthew Loftus, Comment

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“Insightful investigation…although dense with information, Lanahan’s prose is clear and engaging. This compassionate study will appeal to anyone interested in urban history and how social forces influence individuals’ decisions.” 
—Publisher’s Weekly

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"An epic sweep of the last five decades of housing policy...those unfamiliar with these landmarks of housing policy will find that the narrative of Nicole’s and Mark’s stories help to make the policy digestible. One of the best aspects of the book is that it embeds policy into real life."

—Stephen R. Miller, Journal of Affordable Housing and Community Development Law

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"Many authors have answered the call, made sixty years ago by the eminent sociologist C. Wright Mills, to understand the social world by imagining the intersection of biography and history. But few have done so with the skill of Lanahan, an incisive journalist and marvelous storyteller."
—Patrick Sharkey, author of Uneasy Peace and Stuck in Place
 
"How does a journalist render the monster of structural racism? A historical force in motion? And in Baltimore, where its consequences remain terribly alive? The Lines Between Us begins with ordinary lives crossing between homes, schools, churches, neighborhoods. Lanahan tells a story that stretches far beyond the boundaries of (t)his city, that further awakens to our times and ourselves."
—Adrian Nicole LeBlanc, author of Random Family
 
"The Lines Between Us brings humanity and heart to a guided tour of our fraught racial past and its enduring consequences. . . . Endearing, searing, unflinching."
—Davarian Baldwin, author of Chicago’s New Negroes
 
"A brilliant account about race and class [that] captures the promise and challenges that test people and communities throughout America."
—Antero Pietila, author of Not in My Neighborhood and The Ghosts of Johns Hopkins