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Playborhood: Turn Your Neighborhood Into a Place for Play
In Turn Your Neighborhood Into a Place for Play, you’ll find inspiring stories of innovative communities throughout the US and Canada that have successfully created vibrant neighborhood play lives for their children. You’ll also get a comprehensive set of step-by-step solutions to change your family and neighborhood cultures, so that your kids can spend less time in front of screens and in adult-supervised activities, and more time engaging in joyful neighborhood play.
254 pages, Paperback
First published April 4, 2012
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912 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
April 20, 2018
Quick and motivating read. Lanza says many of the things my husband says (who is also in tech). Our goal is to raise independent and confident children. One thing we took from his book was the fact we just may need to move off our busy street. In the meantime we are going to: add a Free Lending Library in our front yard, which sidewalk chalk to encourage lingering; expand our vegetable garden into the front yard; order a clubhouse or fort kit for the kids to assemble in the back yard; and post "pop-up" parties in the large nature park a block from our home. We are so very thankful for the creek a block away -- we just wish the poison ivy wasn't so prevalent in the creek area!
If you follow Free-Range Kids or How to Raise an Adult, this book follows the general themes, but offers specific ways to get your kids, and neighborhood kids, outside playing independently.
If you follow Free-Range Kids or How to Raise an Adult, this book follows the general themes, but offers specific ways to get your kids, and neighborhood kids, outside playing independently.
May 18, 2012
Decades ago, most neighborhoods buzzed with kids playing outside daily. Today, hardly any neighborhoods have kids playing outside at all. Electronic media has essentially squeezed outdoor play out of the lives of American children to the detriment of our children's wellbeing and our immediate communities. How can moms and dads help our kids today to bond with a neighborhood play activity instead of with an indoor screen activity??
In Playborhood: Turn Your Neighborhood Into a Place for Play, you’ll find inspiring stories of innovative communities throughout the US and Canada that have successfully created vibrant neighborhood play lives for their children. You’ll also get a comprehensive set of step-by-step solutions to change your family and neighborhood cultures, so that your kids can spend less time in front of screens and in adult-supervised activities, and more time engaging in joyful neighborhood play.
Since reading this book I have started my own Playborhood group in my neighborhood with about 16 families.
We get together twice a month and it is so much fun for both the adults and kids. I highly recommend reading Mike's book and see if you are inspired to start your own Playborhood. Bet you might!
In Playborhood: Turn Your Neighborhood Into a Place for Play, you’ll find inspiring stories of innovative communities throughout the US and Canada that have successfully created vibrant neighborhood play lives for their children. You’ll also get a comprehensive set of step-by-step solutions to change your family and neighborhood cultures, so that your kids can spend less time in front of screens and in adult-supervised activities, and more time engaging in joyful neighborhood play.
Since reading this book I have started my own Playborhood group in my neighborhood with about 16 families.
We get together twice a month and it is so much fun for both the adults and kids. I highly recommend reading Mike's book and see if you are inspired to start your own Playborhood. Bet you might!
November 17, 2025
The big reason to crack open Playborhood is to read the case studies.
There's a good chance that if this book has landed on your radar these days—as I write this in 2025, it's almost 15 years old—you're already sold on the central thesis. That is to say, you've probably bought in on Lanza's fundamental argument that modern kids don't have enough opportunities for the kind of unstructured, peer-focused, independent neighborhood play that (some) earlier generations had. You probably also understand his ensuing idea that much of that is down to the built environment, and that we can encourage that play ourselves by working with our neighbors to make our commons areas—our streets, our corners, our front yards—more exciting for kids. So a lot of Lanza's advocacy for his position—while it's written compellingly enough—is probably kind of wasted on you. It was on me. I was all-in on the central thesis.
But the case studies that Lanza assembles, of blocks and neighborhoods from locations all over the country that have successfully created a culture of spirited independent play, are legitimately really inspiring and interesting to read. There's really extreme examples—for example, a neighborhood that knocked down its backyard privacy fences to build an enormous outdoor shared space, and even collectively purchased a home to serve as a kind of clubhouse. But there's more lo-fi and grungy ones, like the guy who builds an enormous pool and waterslide in a shipping container in Seattle every summer. Pleasantly, not all the case studies come from a place of total privilege—a lot of these kinds of initiatives would be doable on a middle-class income, and there's a great example of a communal setup in a poorer neighborhood in New York.
I think the takeaway from these case studies is not, necessarily, to replicate any of them—what makes sense in one environment, one neighborhood, one city may or may not work elsewhere. But they're very helpful in spurring your thinking. I've already shared my copy of this with a couple of neighbors, and we have plans to sit down and start sketching out a playborhood plan for our own kid-dense block in the very near future. As idea fuel, this is a good book.
Much of the rest of this book is, I'll confess, more middling. Lanza spends a lot of time offering advice on how to purchase a home in a neighborhood that's well suited for kids to play outside—advice that, to me, seems pretty obvious, and largely dependent on your income, not necessarily your will. And there's some bits on how young kids may benefit from technology that now seem, with the benefit of hindsight, hilariously naive. Still, if you have any interest in the subject matter, this is a quick read, and well worth it.
There's a good chance that if this book has landed on your radar these days—as I write this in 2025, it's almost 15 years old—you're already sold on the central thesis. That is to say, you've probably bought in on Lanza's fundamental argument that modern kids don't have enough opportunities for the kind of unstructured, peer-focused, independent neighborhood play that (some) earlier generations had. You probably also understand his ensuing idea that much of that is down to the built environment, and that we can encourage that play ourselves by working with our neighbors to make our commons areas—our streets, our corners, our front yards—more exciting for kids. So a lot of Lanza's advocacy for his position—while it's written compellingly enough—is probably kind of wasted on you. It was on me. I was all-in on the central thesis.
But the case studies that Lanza assembles, of blocks and neighborhoods from locations all over the country that have successfully created a culture of spirited independent play, are legitimately really inspiring and interesting to read. There's really extreme examples—for example, a neighborhood that knocked down its backyard privacy fences to build an enormous outdoor shared space, and even collectively purchased a home to serve as a kind of clubhouse. But there's more lo-fi and grungy ones, like the guy who builds an enormous pool and waterslide in a shipping container in Seattle every summer. Pleasantly, not all the case studies come from a place of total privilege—a lot of these kinds of initiatives would be doable on a middle-class income, and there's a great example of a communal setup in a poorer neighborhood in New York.
I think the takeaway from these case studies is not, necessarily, to replicate any of them—what makes sense in one environment, one neighborhood, one city may or may not work elsewhere. But they're very helpful in spurring your thinking. I've already shared my copy of this with a couple of neighbors, and we have plans to sit down and start sketching out a playborhood plan for our own kid-dense block in the very near future. As idea fuel, this is a good book.
Much of the rest of this book is, I'll confess, more middling. Lanza spends a lot of time offering advice on how to purchase a home in a neighborhood that's well suited for kids to play outside—advice that, to me, seems pretty obvious, and largely dependent on your income, not necessarily your will. And there's some bits on how young kids may benefit from technology that now seem, with the benefit of hindsight, hilariously naive. Still, if you have any interest in the subject matter, this is a quick read, and well worth it.
September 10, 2023
Create play spaces for kids right outside your home- parks are ok, but big focus is on your and your neighbor yards.
Overall I appreciate the idea and my favorite part of the book was hearing what other neighborhoods do to implement.
I think many of his ideas are dated and have found to be plain wrong. The biggest example is the final chapter with what he thought technology would be like and it’s appropriateness for teens.
Only in one example of the book did he mention an urban setting. I don’t think he included any rural environment, which means 90% of the book was suburban.
So in the end, he raises good points about getting kids outside and encouraging creative ways for them to interact, but was very limited as to what kind of child this would be appropriate or even possible for.
I would be much more interested of an advocate for balance, as there are positive experiences of playing in organized sports, practicing instruments, reading books, and having unstructured time outside. In his pursuit of free play he creates a new idol for a parent to pursue.
Overall I appreciate the idea and my favorite part of the book was hearing what other neighborhoods do to implement.
I think many of his ideas are dated and have found to be plain wrong. The biggest example is the final chapter with what he thought technology would be like and it’s appropriateness for teens.
Only in one example of the book did he mention an urban setting. I don’t think he included any rural environment, which means 90% of the book was suburban.
So in the end, he raises good points about getting kids outside and encouraging creative ways for them to interact, but was very limited as to what kind of child this would be appropriate or even possible for.
I would be much more interested of an advocate for balance, as there are positive experiences of playing in organized sports, practicing instruments, reading books, and having unstructured time outside. In his pursuit of free play he creates a new idol for a parent to pursue.
January 8, 2023
Sections I didn’t need to read given what I’ve already read on outdoor, nature-based play.
My biggest takeaway hit especially hard after enjoying the activity of the Grote Markt in our quaint Belgian town the last year:
“In America, our great archetype is the main street, which is not really a center. It's just a flow. It's a movement corridor, and you have to yell across the street because there isn't a place in the middle. There isn't a social commons that you can attain and occupy. Putting the public space back where it's supposed to be may not sound like a huge change, but it has a profound effect on the social culture. Everybody needs it even though they don't know it's missing.”
Thoughts for our HOA:
At the playground:
—park pavilion
—little free library
—gaga ball pit
In the Woods:
—natural balance beam
—log stepping stones
—monkey bars
—bridge
—zip line
My biggest takeaway hit especially hard after enjoying the activity of the Grote Markt in our quaint Belgian town the last year:
“In America, our great archetype is the main street, which is not really a center. It's just a flow. It's a movement corridor, and you have to yell across the street because there isn't a place in the middle. There isn't a social commons that you can attain and occupy. Putting the public space back where it's supposed to be may not sound like a huge change, but it has a profound effect on the social culture. Everybody needs it even though they don't know it's missing.”
Thoughts for our HOA:
At the playground:
—park pavilion
—little free library
—gaga ball pit
In the Woods:
—natural balance beam
—log stepping stones
—monkey bars
—bridge
—zip line
January 2, 2021
I have mixed feelings on this one. Clearly the idea of children in a neighborhood playing together is somewhat on hold given the pandemic, but I do like to envision what post pandemic life can be for our kids and how we can improve it. I liked that the author gave concrete steps and described successful “playborhoods” that already exist, but so many of the ideas seemed dramatic (tear down all the fences!), expensive (install an in-ground trampoline) and dependent on adults despite his claim that he’s increasing children’s self reliance. Overall though some actionable ideas and a quick read.
October 25, 2023
Fantastic book. Great reflection and bringing together of ideas to help children be happy and independent, with research on urban planning. Interesting and balancing that it is written from a suburbanite subscribing to the American dream of single family home ownership. I think this gives it a wider appeal than if it was written by an inner city/dense living convert. Author acknowledges Appleyards research finding that automobile dependence and the urban form that follows it is part of the problem.
The anecdote about Ben with the modified bike was a valuable addition
The anecdote about Ben with the modified bike was a valuable addition
December 28, 2020
Amazing! Read this in 24 hours, a really quick and interesting read that offers positive and proactive steps people can take to create neighborhoods where children regularly play outside together. Technology is great. But we all recognize the need for kids, especially, to socialize and learn real world people skills. If a family or neighborhood does even 20% of the things this book talks about their kids will so far ahead of the curve of other kids, it’s wild.
Want to read
September 20, 2020AoM podcast #532
March 29, 2023
Good suggestions and examples of how to increase neighborhood play.
April 22, 2023
This book had a lot more real application than other books I’ve read on the same subject. It was a quick read and well worth the time even if it is a bit outdated.
May 7, 2023
Referenced in: There’s No Such Thing as Bad Weather
July 17, 2024
Some outdated data but overall good read with practical ideas to improve neighborhoods for kids and communities
May 17, 2012
I was interested in what author Mike Lanza had to say about this "playborhood" idea. I grew up playing outside, making up games and exploring the canal bank for asparagus to sell to the neighbors. That's not the way things are today though. I'm always encouraging my kids (in the maybe 4-5 months of the year they CAN) to go outside and play. I'm fortunate to live in a neighborhood that is full of kids. In the summer, kids are everywhere. Our neighborhood is off the main street and I feel like we have a good start on the kids playing outside thing. I have awesome neighbors and I think we all want our kids to have fun outside together. We have neighborhood get-togethers. People bike and walk and socialize. Unfortunately, the winter months are long and we all tend to hibernate.
I like a lot of the ideas in this book. I agree with a lot of them, but some of them I'm not sold on. Mike states his case about kids spending way too much time sitting in front of screens. I totally agree. My kids think I'm the meanest mom in the world because I really limit the amount of time the spend on the wii, computer and in front of the television.
I would also agree that kids need more unscheduled time to play. Not planned and not arranged play dates. There is a sort of freedom in having time to play and being able to do whatever you want with that time.
However, creating a "playborhood" takes money no matter how you look at it. Not everyone has the money at their disposal to create the sort of ideals that Mike has. He has made his yard what it is by choosing to spend his money there instead of on the inside of his home or other things. Not all of us have the same freedoms with income. But, I do think we can do small things to encourage children to play together outside and that it doesn't have to cost a ton of money.
Mike does have a lot of cool ideas though. Outdoor whiteboards on the fence, in ground trampoline, fountain, river structure, playhouse, picnic benches in the front yard. Sounds like a fun hangout to me! The neighborhoods he has spotlighted in his book are all doing some cool things too. It's nice to know that people care about kids and make efforts to make the world a better place for them. I think it's so important to know your neighbors and establish relationships with them. When we all work together respectfully we can accomplish so much.
In this book you will find all kinds of good advice and ideas for starting your own "playborhood". If you are looking for a home to raise kids, he gives lots of tips for finding the right kind of neighborhood and home for establishing a "playborhood".
I like a lot of the ideas in this book. I agree with a lot of them, but some of them I'm not sold on. Mike states his case about kids spending way too much time sitting in front of screens. I totally agree. My kids think I'm the meanest mom in the world because I really limit the amount of time the spend on the wii, computer and in front of the television.
I would also agree that kids need more unscheduled time to play. Not planned and not arranged play dates. There is a sort of freedom in having time to play and being able to do whatever you want with that time.
However, creating a "playborhood" takes money no matter how you look at it. Not everyone has the money at their disposal to create the sort of ideals that Mike has. He has made his yard what it is by choosing to spend his money there instead of on the inside of his home or other things. Not all of us have the same freedoms with income. But, I do think we can do small things to encourage children to play together outside and that it doesn't have to cost a ton of money.
Mike does have a lot of cool ideas though. Outdoor whiteboards on the fence, in ground trampoline, fountain, river structure, playhouse, picnic benches in the front yard. Sounds like a fun hangout to me! The neighborhoods he has spotlighted in his book are all doing some cool things too. It's nice to know that people care about kids and make efforts to make the world a better place for them. I think it's so important to know your neighbors and establish relationships with them. When we all work together respectfully we can accomplish so much.
In this book you will find all kinds of good advice and ideas for starting your own "playborhood". If you are looking for a home to raise kids, he gives lots of tips for finding the right kind of neighborhood and home for establishing a "playborhood".
March 31, 2013
This book is potentially life-changing, which is my usual criterion for 5 stars; in fact it could change many people's lives mostly for the better, not just my own. Turning neighborhoods into safe places for play would get more kids outside and socializing with other kids.
Somerville, MA wants to be a great place to live, work, play and raise a family (and we think it's pretty close to greatness on most of those). City officials arranged for the author of this book to make a presentation and for audience members in small, neighborhood-based groups to discuss ideas from the book and policy changes that could make it easier for playborhoods to spring up.
I recognized immediately from the map in the cover photo that a Stanford-area neighborhood would feature prominently. It is the author's own. He has implemented many great ideas for helping his family spend more living time out of doors in their yard. This seemed like the longest chapter; I guess you write what you know (and who you are). But the short chapters about Professor Fox in NYC or about Share-It Square in Portland might apply more in Somerville.
I did feel like the author must have had an ideal childhood, and the book felt very male-centric to me. I do value unsupervised outdoor play and basically only went indoors for meals winter or summer, like so many of us. But it was not all hunky-dory. For example in the front of the book, the manifesto about free-range outdoor play with other kids lists having secret clubs as something he wants for his kids. What if his child would be the one who had to be excluded (since you can't have a secret club without excluding someone)? He also seems very social which is nice, but I do crave, value, even *need* privacy when I get home after giving a lot of attention to lots of other folks through the work day. I would be curious to know more about the author's son Marco and their relationship because while he talks about giving his son more social skills, he also mentions the child has one particular friend. I have known some children who give such perfect attention one-on-one that when they are in large groups someone who isn't getting that attention can even get upset with them. It just felt like the author unreflectively takes perspectives like his own as good, and tries to encourage others to be like him. For those who are trying to do the same thing, the book could be a great inspiration. By collecting and disseminating stories of various playborhoods, it will probably do a great service to the movement for more outdoor play.
Somerville, MA wants to be a great place to live, work, play and raise a family (and we think it's pretty close to greatness on most of those). City officials arranged for the author of this book to make a presentation and for audience members in small, neighborhood-based groups to discuss ideas from the book and policy changes that could make it easier for playborhoods to spring up.
I recognized immediately from the map in the cover photo that a Stanford-area neighborhood would feature prominently. It is the author's own. He has implemented many great ideas for helping his family spend more living time out of doors in their yard. This seemed like the longest chapter; I guess you write what you know (and who you are). But the short chapters about Professor Fox in NYC or about Share-It Square in Portland might apply more in Somerville.
I did feel like the author must have had an ideal childhood, and the book felt very male-centric to me. I do value unsupervised outdoor play and basically only went indoors for meals winter or summer, like so many of us. But it was not all hunky-dory. For example in the front of the book, the manifesto about free-range outdoor play with other kids lists having secret clubs as something he wants for his kids. What if his child would be the one who had to be excluded (since you can't have a secret club without excluding someone)? He also seems very social which is nice, but I do crave, value, even *need* privacy when I get home after giving a lot of attention to lots of other folks through the work day. I would be curious to know more about the author's son Marco and their relationship because while he talks about giving his son more social skills, he also mentions the child has one particular friend. I have known some children who give such perfect attention one-on-one that when they are in large groups someone who isn't getting that attention can even get upset with them. It just felt like the author unreflectively takes perspectives like his own as good, and tries to encourage others to be like him. For those who are trying to do the same thing, the book could be a great inspiration. By collecting and disseminating stories of various playborhoods, it will probably do a great service to the movement for more outdoor play.
December 14, 2014
This book has good examples of what people have done to make their neighborhoods more inticing for kids. The idea is to play outside, with kids of all ages, regularly, on their own, making their own memories. I love it when he says, "think of you fondest memories as a kid...did they involve an adult?" Most likely they did not.
In this book he tries to give you some ideas in which you can create a kid oasis in your own neighborhood or yard. I took notes and now have ideas of what I would like to start with. I wish he would have helped with suggestions on what to say to neighbors, to get them involved though.
In this book he tries to give you some ideas in which you can create a kid oasis in your own neighborhood or yard. I took notes and now have ideas of what I would like to start with. I wish he would have helped with suggestions on what to say to neighbors, to get them involved though.
March 6, 2015
Okay, I've actually only skimmed this book - lots of pictures and even diagrams - but this guy is really obsessive and compulsive about community - and child centered ones at that; and it probably takes that kind of personality to actually achieve a playborhood. Loved his ideas and descriptions of successful playborhoods (including the neighborhood map on the driveway complete with HO railroad tracks, etc (where do you park the car? - I'll just have to settle for the patio). He also provided me with the name of the "big Lincoln logs" set that I keep seeing on pinterest - w/o attribution: slotwood. Probably costs a fortune. (slotwood.com)
January 30, 2016
I liked it. It gave some good ideas and things to think about, though some were a bit unrealistic and out of reach for people who don't have the financial means to achieve some of these things. Because of my already established personal views on this whole issue, much of it was preaching to the choir. But, overall, the book shares a message all parents need to hear, loud and clear. Our kids need more time to be left on their own to play. It's that simple. Stop the fear, the micro-managing, the hovering, the over scheduling.... just let them be....give them the chance to discover who they are and what they want to do....give them the opportunity to develop self-reliance.
August 8, 2013
I think I heard the author interviewed on NPR and was intrigued by the concept of the book. Our family is lucky enough to live in a real neighborhood in a safe community, and mostly this book just reassured me that our kids are getting the chance to play in a sweet old-fashioned way that many of their contemporaries don't. While it ended up not really being helpful to me, I think it would be good for people who live in other communities that want to establish an environment that better fosters free play for their children.
February 3, 2016
I agree with a lot of what Lanza said, but even I got annoyed with him. He comes across as very sure of himself. This is a manifesto, no doubt. But I was lucky enough to grow up in the kind of neighborhood he describes, and this made me think a lot about that experience, and what made my neighborhood what it was.
August 22, 2014
A practical application and a real action for change. A real example of giving, sharing and creating a creative environment where everybody becomes an active member. This is play made real and serious and not taken for granted.
May 21, 2013
Self-published, and a bit quixotic, but still compelling and full of great ideas.
April 14, 2019
Great tips on how to encourage neighborhood play and self-reliance.
Its tips on cell phone use either predate or ignore what we now know about depression and social media for kids.
Its tips on cell phone use either predate or ignore what we now know about depression and social media for kids.
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