“Holy Land” and the comforts of suburbia

HE LIVES WHERE most Americans live—in suburbia. His house sits on a plot that is 50 feet wide and 100 feet deep. In front is a pavement, four feet wide, then a strip of green containing a tree, seven feet, then a road, 40 feet. His neighbours’ houses look much the same. At six per acre, homes are close enough for arguments to be overheard, but only if you pay attention. They are close enough for comfort.

The suburb is Lakewood, south of Los Angeles. It was built during and after the second world war and was at first occupied mostly by white manual workers. Although the developers were Jewish, Jews were initially barred from living there, as were blacks. Among the early settlers were the parents of D.J. Waldie. He became a city official, and in 1996 published “Holy Land”, a short, delightful book about the place. It is a reminder that many people are happy to lead constrained lives, even if they are free to move.

Earlier defences of America’s suburbs, such as Herbert Gans’s “The Levittowners”, argued that they were more diverse and sociable than their critics alleged. Mr Waldie does not quite agree. His childhood, with its packed swimming pools and freewheeling Monopoly games, was sociable. Adulthood is less so. Few people walk the streets; each house is an island, visited occasionally by friends and family, who come and...