Community: The Structure of Belonging,   ISBN:9781605092775

Customer Rating: 

The author presents some radical ideas about community building. I found myself absorbed in understanding how to change my thinking about communities. The book is well written and will become a book for which I will refer to on many occasions.

Customer Rating: 

"Mercy and truth have met together;
Righteousness and peace have kissed." -- Psalm 85:10

One of my favorite sayings is that "the best help is self-help." That's one of the major themes of this book.

I came to the book as someone who favors finding solutions that delight all those affected and as a fan of Peter Block's classic book, Flawless Consulting. I wasn't prepared for what I found in the first few chapters of Community: A dense summary of the views of other authors that feature their jargon and concepts. It was heavy going. I almost gave up before the book's message began to yield to Peter Block's views as exemplified by some examples from the Cincinnati area.

This book could have been told in a much more direct, simple, and easier-to-understand way. I found myself mentally translating the concepts back into ordinary English to grasp the major points.

As a result, the book comes across as almost like a simplified dissertation, not the kind of work that you may be expecting. One of the limits of tipping one's cap as an author to so many other writers is that you are limited in how much you can advance the argument into new territory without doing some new homework.

There's lots of good advice in the book so I do hope you will persevere. If our communities are to become stronger and more nurturing for all, we need to get past arguing about philosophies while nothing gets done. This book can be a helpful contribution to such progress if people read and apply its vision and structural recommendations.

Customer Rating: 

Very helpful in understanding how to make lasting changes within organizations. Very thoughtful and encouraging.

Customer Rating: 

This is the best book I have read on Community Building. It is in my view essential reading for anyone involved in community work. The ideas are sometimes challenging particularly for Service Providers, however they are always incisive practical and valid.
This is a great book that gets to the core of community.

Customer Rating: 

As usual, this book by Peter Block blocks the reality that his actual work in his self-appointed "home" community of Cincinnati further marginalizes the voices of the disenfranchised. I have been in more than a few community meetings with Peter, and I have witnessed him silence anybody who attempts to speak truth to power. Peter Block needs to learn how his own cultural biases work to block his own efforts to support the efforts of those on the margins of society.